Rasmussen thrives, meets all preseason goals in dream return from 3rd elbow surgery

BALTIMORE -- Jordan Westburg’s fly ball had barely settled into Jake Mangum’s glove in right field for the first out of the third inning of the Rays’ 6-5 loss to the Orioles on Thursday afternoon at Camden Yards, and Rays manager Kevin Cash was already on his way to the mound.

Drew Rasmussen stood on the hill, staring at the baseball in his right hand. He got a one-armed hug from catcher Nick Fortes, a pat on the chest from third baseman Junior Caminero and fist bumps from the rest of the infielders. Then Cash patted Rasmussen on the shoulder and took the ball, ending Rasmussen’s 31st start of the season and capping his remarkable return to the rotation.

“I'll point to his work ethic before I point to anything. I mean, he's obviously extremely talented, but talent only gets you so far,” pitching coach Kyle Snyder said. “He's willed his way back. He's willed his way through this season. He'll continue to do that as long as he plays this game.”

With Rasmussen having undergone Tommy John surgery twice in college and an internal brace procedure in 2023, the Rays set out from Spring Training with the idea that they would carefully manage his workload as a starter after he spent the final months of last season working as a reliever.

Their plan was that, if everything went well, he would pitch no more than 150 innings. Rasmussen’s goal was to not miss a turn in the rotation. When he walked off the mound on Thursday afternoon, he had thrown exactly 150 innings without skipping a start.

“His work ethic is second to none. We've known that for a while, and he's just solidified that over the last six months,” Cash said. “A lot of thoughts come together in Spring Training, and probably a lot of them don't end up being that way at the end of the year. Ras has done that.”

But Rasmussen did not simply survive his return to the rotation, going start to finish for the first time in his Major League career. He once again thrived in a starting role, putting up dominant numbers matching what he did before his third major elbow surgery. He finished the season with a 10-5 record, a 2.76 ERA, a 1.02 WHIP and his first All-Star nod.

“I think we're all really proud of what he's accomplished,” Snyder said. “To my knowledge, he's the first one to reenter the rotation after three medial elbow reconstructions and finish a complete season -- and to do it in an All-Star fashion.”

Ten of Rasmussen's starts were scoreless. He never allowed more than four runs in an outing, and he permitted three or fewer runs in 28 of his 31 starts. According to Baseball Reference, he entered the day ranked sixth among American League pitchers in WAR, with 4.4. He became only the fourth starter in franchise history to make at least 30 starts with a sub-3.00 ERA, joining Blake Snell (2018), James Shields (2011) and David Price (2010 and ‘12).

“It felt like every time he took the ball, we were going to win the game,” Cash said. “I think that's what stands out the most.”

Even in an abbreviated season finale in which he lacked his usual precision, Rasmussen did that on Thursday. He worked around a single and an error in the first inning, then he pitched his way out of a bases-loaded, nobody-out jam in the second. The Rays sent him back to the mound for the third, and two pitches later, he had achieved the goal they set at the start of the season.

“When you set goals at the beginning of the year, obviously it's nice when you can achieve them. Cashy, Snydes and myself had talked about them giving me the opportunity to get there today,” Rasmussen said. “I tried to come up short, yet Cashy and Snydes stuck to their word. It was nice.”

Around the horn

• Designated hitter Yandy Díaz exited Thursday’s game after two at-bats due to right groin tightness. Cash said he is day to day and will be evaluated before Friday’s series opener in Toronto.
• In the fourth inning, center fielder Everson Pereira left the game due to low back tightness. He has been dealing with tightness in his lower back, near his SI joint, and Cash said he “likely” won’t be available during the final three games of the season.

• The Rays fell to 77-82, guaranteeing a second straight losing season as they dropped their season series with the Orioles, 7-6. Reliever Kevin Kelly gave up a game-tying homer to Coby Mayo in the eighth inning and a walk-off shot to Dylan Beavers in the ninth.