Rays is likely to place field players Manuel Margot and Kevin Kiermaier 10 days on the injured list, manager Kevin Cash told reporters (including Marc Topkin of this Tampa Bay Times). Both players left the Yankees early tonight and Margot in particular seems to be away.
Margot had to be removed from the field at the beginning of the ninth shift. Playing on the right field, he jumped against the wall, chasing him Aaron Hicks volleyball. He landed awkwardly on his right knee after the collision and had to be cut off from the field. Cash said after the game that he had been diagnosed with a knee sprain and remarked ominously:it doesn’t look good. ”
However, Kiermaier left after the second shift. The team later announced that he had inflammation of his left hip and that the problem would probably require a break of at least a week and a half. It marked the second time in five days that Cairo had to leave early, and although his last issue is different from the Achilles inflammation that forced him to leave last Wednesday, it brings about some absence.
Needless to say, the loss of a couple of regular field players will force Tampa Bay to dip into the abyss. Randy Arozarena has started with a designated batsman in the last two nights, but now he goes back to the left field more or less daily. Highly appreciated newcomer Josh Lowe was recalled before tonight’s game after a six-week game at Triple-A in Durham. He thinks he will make regular repetitions in either the middle or the right field, but it is to be expected how much offensive effect he will have. The 24-year-old has only 0.179 / .257 / .328 lines during his first 75 MLB record appearances; he posted large numbers with the Bulls, but also achieved a worrying 31.2% result among minors.
Tampa Bay’s active roster includes a few outfielders Brett Phillips and Harold Ramírez. Both players could take on bigger roles with Margot and Kiermaier, but it would probably be wrong for either player everyday. Phillips is a great defender, but hits 0.172 / 0.238 / 291 with a breakthrough rate of 41.6%. Ramírez plays on the pitch (.297 / .337 / .386) but has been rated well below average throughout his career as a defender.
Rays can move to a loose group between Phillips, who hits the left, and Ramírez, who swings in the field on the right, with Lowe playing in the middle, especially if they assume that Kiermaier is not on the shorter side. Former Dodger Luke Raley is on the 40-man list and hits well in Durham and can recall to add depth to the offensive bench. Given the uncertainty of Lowe, Phillips, Ramírez and Raley, it seems likely that the club will at least look for possible external additions in the market.
For Rays, who has been without his main average inner field, it has been a difficult period Brandon Lowe and Travel to Franco and their # 1 return area Mike Zunino weeks. The losses of Margot and Kiermaier will deprive the club of their five players in their main position, and it is a small surprise that the team has been roaring recently. Tampa Bay have lost six of their last seven games to 36:31. They are now halfway through the Red Sox to reach the final Wild Card spot in the American League.
The harsh injury news wasn’t limited to what happened tonight, as Cash also provided a daunting update on the reliever Nick Anderson foreplay. IL has had a better rate all season after undergoing a UCL brace procedure last October. His initial recovery schedule indicated a possible return during the stellar break, but Cash said he was still feeling uncomfortable and would be subject to further evaluation tomorrow (Topkin link). Obviously, more will be revealed in the coming days, but it seems unlikely that the 31-year-old man will return to High League in the near future.
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