Uceta (shoulder) gets good news, but Opening Day still uncertain

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- The Rays received relatively good news about injured reliever Edwin Uceta on Friday, but there is still a chance he’s not ready for Opening Day.

Uceta received a cortisone injection in his “cranky” right shoulder after visiting Dr. Koco Eaton on Friday. He will rest for two days before resuming strength exercises, then he’ll attempt to play catch again next weekend, manager Kevin Cash said.

Cash said Uceta’s visit to Dr. Eaton revealed “a little impingement” and inflammation, but the Rays don’t seem overly concerned about it being a long-term concern.

“Other than hearing there's no issue at all, this is the best case,” Cash said.

Relievers don’t need as much time to get ready for the season as starting pitchers do, so there is a chance Uceta could be ready for Opening Day if everything goes well in his recovery and return to throwing. It’s not a sure thing, however, that he will be good to go in the bullpen in St. Louis on March 26.

“It's probably cutting it close, just the way we build guys up, but I'm not going to say,” Cash said. “It is too early to definitively say.”

Uceta removed himself from the Dominican Republic roster for the World Baseball Classic last Sunday due to his shoulder issue, which he reported after arriving for Spring Training.

The right-hander went through a normal offseason, throwing bullpen sessions with no issues, then took nearly a week off to attend his arbitration hearing in Arizona last month. He returned home and resumed throwing, at which point he said he began to feel “a little bit uncomfortable.”

He was still able to play catch at Charlotte Sports Park, but it became enough of an issue to bring it up. The Rays shut him down for a few days, then he felt the soreness return as he increased the distances of his throws while playing catch on Thursday. That prompted an MRI and a visit to Dr. Eaton on Friday.

Uceta is expected to play a significant role in Tampa Bay’s bullpen this season, joining fellow high-leverage relievers Griffin Jax, Garrett Cleavinger and Bryan Baker in the late-inning mix. The Rays will have plenty of competition in camp to fill out the remaining four spots in their bullpen -- or potentially five, if Uceta needs more time to prepare for the season.

Camp notes

• Infield prospect Brayden Taylor, the Rays’ first-round pick in the 2023 Draft, broke his left thumb during bunting practice on Friday, when he took a ball from a pitching machine off it. Cash said the injury will be an issue of pain tolerance and playing through discomfort for Taylor, the former top prospect who’s coming off a frustrating season in Double-A.

“You feel for him. I called him yesterday afterwards, just because I know the year that he had,” Cash said. “You want him to come in and have a good camp, and he'll get back out there. We’ll get some ABs for him.

• Cash began his morning media session by offering condolences regarding the passing of Joey Knight, the longtime Tampa Bay Times sports reporter who spent most of his career covering local high schools and Florida colleges. Knight passed away Friday, at the age of 57, after a brave battle with cancer.

“He did a hell of a job as a writer,” Cash said. “Certainly thinking of his family and everybody at the Times.”