ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays’ rotation was nearly made whole on Monday night, as left-hander Shane McClanahan was activated off the injured list and pitched 3 1/3 innings to start Tampa Bay's 7-6 win over the Orioles at Tropicana Field.
It was McClanahan’s first start in the Majors since July 30, when he exited his outing against the Rangers in the fourth inning due to left mid-back tightness. McClanahan was placed on the 15-day IL the next day, but everything pointed to a relatively short stint on the shelf.
Fortunately for the Rays, that turned out to be exactly the case. Last Tuesday, McClanahan pitched three perfect innings in a rehab game for Triple-A Durham and came out of it feeling fine. The Rays knew he would have what manager Kevin Cash called a “condensed” workload in his return to the Majors, but he proved that he’s healthy and ready for the stretch run.
“Having him back is huge. He's one of our best competitors,” starter Nick Martinez said Monday afternoon. “I love watching him pitch. Excited to let go of the reins and let him do his thing."
McClanahan allowed three runs on four hits while striking out three batters. His fastball averaged 95.6 mph, exactly the same as his average on the season.
The left-hander pitched a clean first inning before allowing a 468-foot moonshot to Coby Mayo to lead off the second. He retired the next four batters he faced in order then worked around an infield single in a scoreless third inning.
He gave up a single to Jackson Holliday and a double to Mayo in the fourth, then struck out Gunnar Henderson. With McClanahan having thrown 57 pitches, Cash pulled him in favor of right-hander Casey Legumina, and both inherited runners scored on a ground-ball single by Christian Encarnacion-Strand.
Right-hander Joe Boyle, who threw 84 pitches over 3 1/3 innings out of the bullpen in Sunday's 10-2 loss to the Orioles after being called up from Triple-A Durham on Saturday, was optioned back to Durham on Monday to make room for McClanahan.
McClanahan is joining a rotation that still has Drew Rasmussen, Martinez, Freddy Peralta and Ian Seymour. The only missing piece is right-hander Griffin Jax, who is on the injured list due to right elbow discomfort.
Jax received an injection to “calm the back of the elbow down” after undergoing testing with Dr. Keith Meister last week, but he has resumed playing catch and should soon make plans for his return to the mound.