TAMPA BAY RAYS NEWS

Ben Rortvedt - Not starting Saturday Rortvedt is not in Saturday's lineup against the Guardians.

Impact Rortvedt has been getting the majority of reps behind the plate for the Rays, but he'll be out of the lineup for the second straight game. Logan Driscoll -- who smacked his first homer of his career Friday -- will take Rortvedt's spot in the lineup.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Ben Rortvedt - Not starting Saturday Rortvedt is not in Saturday's lineup against the Guardians.

Impact Rortvedt has been getting the majority of the reps behind the plate for the Rays, but he'll be out of the lineup for the second straight game. Logan Driscoll -- who smacked the first homer of his career Friday -- will take Rortvedt's spot in the lineup.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Christopher Morel - Sitting Saturday Morel (Achilles) is not in Saturday's lineup against Cleveland.

Impact Morel was forced to exit Friday's game after suffering a leg injury while running the bases. The injury isn't believed to be serious, but Morel will get at least one more day to rest.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Jose Siri - Snaps out of slump Siri went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and a run scored Friday against the Guardians.

Impact Siri has struggled considerably across the last three weeks, going just 5-for-46 with a 42 percent percent strikeout rate. He's still started 13 of 21 games in center field in that span but has ceded some playing time to the combination of Jonny DeLuca and Dylan Carlson.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Yandy Díaz - Playing time slipping Diaz has not started in three of the Rays' last eight games.

Impact Diaz is still starting the majority of games for Tampa Bay, but his playing time has slipped as Jonathan Aranda becomes a more consistent presence in the lineup. Diaz's usage against righties is particularly concerning, as he's started only half of the team's last six matchups. It's possible he is dealing with an injury, though the Rays have not disclosed that.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Jonathan Aranda - Getting regular look in lineup Aranda went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Friday against the Guardians.

Impact Aranda has been in the lineup for seven of the Rays' last eight games, including five appearances at first base. In that limited sample, he's gone 7-for-25 with two homers, three RBI, three doubles and five runs scored. With Tampa Bay out of the playoff picture, the team could opt to continue giving Aranda run to evaluate him for a potentially expanded role in 2025.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Guardians' Joey Cantillo looks to subdue Rays Left-hander Joey Cantillo should have plenty of confidence following the best start of his young major league career.That could prove import...

SEPTEMBER 14 • STAR-TELEGRAM.COM

Rays face the Guardians with 2-0 series lead

The Tampa Bay Rays bring a 2-0 advantage into the next game of the series against the Cleveland Guardians

SEPTEMBER 14 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Early homers, Zack Littell's gem propel Rays past Guardians Zack Littell allowed just two hits over six scoreless innings, Logan Driscoll clubbed his first career home run and Jonathan Aranda also wen...

SEPTEMBER 14 • THENEWSTRIBUNE.COM

20-20 vision for Rays top prospects Williams, Taylor at Double-A The Rays earned the top spot in MLB Pipeline’s midseason farm system rankings, and Carson Williams and Brayden Taylor had a lot to do with t...

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Logan Driscoll - Cracks first career homer Driscoll went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in Friday's 3-1 win at Cleveland.

Impact The 26-year-old rookie opened the game's scoring when he slugged a 393-foot, two-run homer off Tanner Bibee in the third inning for his first long ball. Driscoll is currently the reserve backstop in Tampa Bay behind Ben Rortvedt, as he's now hitting .235 (4-for-14) over his first six MLB games. He did flash a solid bat at Triple-A Durham before his promotion, slashing .292/.367/.473 with seven homers across 293 plate appearances, so it's possible the Rays give him more playing time down the stretch.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Driscoll (1st MLB HR) at the center of Rays' victory CLEVELAND -- While the Rays technically aren’t out of the playoff hunt, it’s safe to say that the remaining games on their schedule are just...

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Zack Littell - Cruises to seventh win Littell (7-9) earned the win Friday against the Guardians, pitching six scoreless innings while allowing two hits and no walks. He struck out five.

Impact The 28-year-old was stellar in this 89-pitch performance, as he generated an impressive 18 whiffs -- including 10 alone on his slider -- while surprisingly punching out only five. Littell has picked up consecutive wins while pitching 11 scoreless innings over his last two starts as he appears to have fully recovered from his shoulder injury in August. He has now pitched to a 3.73 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 127:31 K:BB across 144.2 innings this season. He is currently slated to make his next outing against the Blue Jays at home.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Edwin Uceta - Earns third save in return Uceta earned the save in Friday's 3-1 victory over Cleveland, pitching 1.2 clean innings with two strikeouts.

Impact Uceta relieved Mason Montgomery with one out in the eighth after the latter allowed two hits to his three batters faced. Uceta efficiently retired five straight batters on only 18 pitches to lock down the Rays win in his first appearance since serving a two-game suspension for intentionally hitting Nick Castellanos on Tuesday. He has now pitched to a 1.42 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 53:6 K:BB with three saves across 38 innings this season. The 26-year-old has been an elite reliever and is in the fluid mix for Tampa Bay save opportunities while Pete Fairbanks (lat) remains on the injured list.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Tanner Bibee's outing against the Rays | 09/13/2024 The data behind Tanner Bibee's outing

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Brandon Lowe out at second after review | 09/13/2024 Brandon Lowe is ruled out at second base after the original call is overturned in the top of the 5th inning

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Andrew Walters fans Taylor Walls for first career K | 09/13/2024 The Official Site of Major League Baseball

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Tyler Alexander - Following opener Saturday Alexander is expected to work in bulk relief behind opener Drew Rasmussen on Saturday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Impact Many of Alexander's appearances have come as a bulk reliever this season, though it hasn't necessarily benefited his performance, as he owns a career-worst 5.50 ERA through 93.1 innings. He turned in a solid outing during his last appearance against the Phillies (one earned run over 4.1 IP), but he's too inconsistent to be considered a reliable streaming option.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Drew Rasmussen - Opening Saturday Rasmussen will serve as the Rays' opener for Saturday's game versus the Guardians, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Impact Rasmussen has put up a 2.79 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 19.1 innings this season, and he'll now be entrusted with at least the first three batters of Saturday's contest, though most of his appearances this season have lasted two full innings. Tyler Alexander is expected to handle bulk-relief duties once Rasmussen exits.

SEPTEMBER 14 • ROTOWIRE

Tanner Bibee strikes out nine Rays | 09/13/2024 Tanner Bibee takes the mound against the Rays, striking out nine batters across six solid innings of work

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Zack Littell's gem backed by pair of early HRs as Rays top Guardians Zack Littell allowed just two hits over six scoreless innings, Logan Driscoll clubbed his first career home run and Jonathan Aranda also wen...

SEPTEMBER 14 • NEWSOBSERVER.COM

Tampa Bay Rays at Cleveland Guardians Preview - 09/14/2024 This browser does not support the video element.

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Guardians' AL Central lead shrinks with 2nd straight loss to Rays CLEVELAND -- A loss with Tanner Bibee on the mound is rare for the Guardians, but it seems as though Tampa Bay just has Cleveland’s number....

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM

Littell blanks Cleveland for 6 innings, rookie Driscoll hits first homer as Rays top Guardians 3-1

Zack Littell shut down Cleveland for six innings and rookie Logan Driscoll hit his first career homer, sending the Tampa Bay Rays to a 3-1 win over the AL Central-leading Guardians

SEPTEMBER 14 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Tanner Bibee strikes out Josh Lowe | 09/13/2024 The Official Site of Major League Baseball

SEPTEMBER 14 • MLB.COM