ST. PETERSBURG -- With their bullpen beset by injuries, the Rays added some potentially interesting relief depth on Friday afternoon by acquiring right-hander Casey Legumina in a trade with the Mariners.
The Rays sent Minor League right-hander Ty Cummings to the Mariners to land Legumina, who was designated for assignment by Seattle on Tuesday. It’s a return to the Mariners organization for Cummings, who initially joined the Rays in 2024 as the player to be named in the deal that sent All-Star left fielder Randy Arozarena to Seattle.
Legumina officially joined the Rays before Sunday’s series finale against the Twins at Tropicana Field, wearing No. 67, and the Rays optioned right-hander Trevor Martin to Triple-A Durham to make room for him on the active roster. Tampa Bay transferred right-hander Edwin Uceta (right shoulder strain) to the 60-day injured list on Friday to make room for Legumina on the 40-man roster.
“It feels good. It always feels good to have an opportunity somewhere,” Legumina said Sunday morning. “Good spot to be in. Heard nothing but good things about the org. … I’m excited. A lot of good pitching stuff going on here, and I’m glad to be a part of it.”
The 28-year-old right-hander should have a chance to carve out a role, given the Rays’ rash of bullpen injuries. Uceta and right-hander Steven Wilson have been sidelined since Spring Training. Manuel Rodríguez isn’t expected to be ready until midseason after undergoing forearm/elbow surgery last August.
More recently, the Rays lost high-leverage lefty Garrett Cleavinger to a right calf injury and multi-inning righty Mason Englert to right forearm tightness. And they’ve struggled to handle those absences, as their 5.43 bullpen ERA entering Sunday's action was the fourth-worst mark in the Majors.
“Right now, with where the bullpen is, I think we need to be opportunistic,” manager Kevin Cash said Friday afternoon. “And this is a guy we like.”
The Twins selected Legumina out of Gonzaga in the eighth round of the 2019 Draft, then dealt him to Cincinnati for Kyle Farmer in November 2022. He debuted for the Reds in 2023 and made 17 appearances for Cincinnati in 2023-24. The Reds designated him for assignment in January 2025 and traded him to the Mariners for cash a few days later.
In 56 appearances for the Mariners over the past two seasons, Legumina has recorded a 5.43 ERA with 64 strikeouts and 28 walks over 61 1/3 innings. After being designated for assignment, he said, he stayed ready in Seattle by playing catch with an old college friend in his backyard.
Then the Rays came calling.
“That was a great call. Felt like I was wanted, so that’s always a good feeling,” Legumina said. “I know I’ve got good stuff. It’s just a matter of getting it in the zone enough and getting around the zone and just keep refining.”
The right-hander relies mostly on a lower-slot, high-carry four-seam fastball that was averaging 93.5 mph with the Mariners this season after clocking in at 94.3 mph last year. Cash said the Rays were intrigued by that pitch in particular, and he should have plenty of chances to work with pitching coach Kyle Snyder and bullpen coach Jorge Moncada.
“I’m sure Kyle and Jorge will get to work on doing everything we can to help him,” Cash said. “I know his numbers a little bit right now, but we’ve gotten some guys with numbers that maybe haven’t had the most impressive stat line to start a 10-inning stretch and were able to reset themselves. Hopefully this helps him and he can help us.”