BRADENTON, Fla. -- Jacob Melton had two very different experiences with balls soaring through the sky on a windy Sunday afternoon at LECOM Park.
In the first inning of the Rays’ 7-4 loss to the Pirates, Melton took a step back and moved to his right when former Ray Brandon Lowe skied a high fly ball to center field. But the wind brought the ball back in, so Melton had to use his impressive speed to change course, come in and dive for the ball to make the catch.
An out’s an out, right?
“The wind was giving us fits out here. Some of the balls, the way they were flying, were not like anything I'd ever seen,” Melton said, laughing. “I mean, I think my route efficiency on that probably would have been 5%. Fortunate to catch that ball, but man, that route -- hopefully that’s the worst one we have all year.”
Melton’s busy day continued in the sixth inning, when he obliterated a 1-1 cutter from right-hander Yohan Ramírez and launched it over the boardwalk beyond the right-field fence. Statcast didn’t track the distance on the Rays’ first home run of the spring, which came off Melton’s bat at 104.7 mph, but bench coach Rodney Linares had a pretty good estimate.
“Really far,” Linares said. “Really, really far.”
Loud contact is becoming Melton’s calling card in his first Spring Training camp with the Rays, but Sunday’s blast also validated some of the work he has done with Tampa Bay’s hitting coaches. Melton said he has tweaked his setup at the plate, narrowing his stance to help him hold his back hip better and feel more athletic in the batter’s box, not so locked into certain movement patterns.
The Rays approached him with those suggestions right away, and Melton felt they perfectly addressed an issue he felt but couldn’t necessarily articulate.
“It’s felt great so far,” Melton said. “Obviously it’s going to be a little bit of a learning curve going into live at-bats and stuff with it, but I really like where we’re at, and I feel like we’re in a pretty good spot at this point in the spring.”
Injury updates
Shortstop Taylor Walls was scratched from the starting lineup about an hour before Sunday’s game due to left oblique tightness. The club said the decision was precautionary, and Walls was replaced by non-roster infielder Raynel Delgado.
Linares said Walls reported some “light tightness” in his left oblique after he got through his pregame stretching and hitting. Walls isn’t scheduled to undergo an MRI or any further testing, and Linares said he “should be fine in the next 24 hours.”
Infield prospect Jadher Areinamo exited in the third inning due to right hamstring tightness. Areinamo, the club’s No. 28 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, sustained the injury while running the bases and scoring in the third. Linares also described Areinamo’s removal as a “precaution,” and he was replaced at third base by Logan Davidson.
Game notes
• Pitching a scoreless inning as the Rays’ starter on Sunday was special for many reasons for non-roster right-hander Jake Woodford.
It was the 29-year-old Woodford’s first time pitching in any sort of game for his hometown team, as he’s a native of St. Petersburg who played for Tampa’s Plant High and grew up cheering for the Rays. It was his first time pitching at LECOM Park since he was with the Cardinals’ Florida State League affiliate in 2017. And he got to do it in front of a bunch of family, including his wife and 7-week-old son, Jett.
“It’s kind of a dream come true for me,” Woodford said. “Being local here and having my whole family and my son’s first game today, it was just great all the way around.”
• Catcher Hunter Feduccia had a busy day with the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System. Behind the plate, he was correct with his first three challenges, getting three balls overturned to strikes. But he missed on one challenge as a hitter, which was confirmed as a strike, then admittedly got greedy and whiffed on his final challenge as a catcher, which was upheld as a ball.
“For hitters, I think we're going to be a little aggressive with it, just to get a feel for the zone and just get used to it in general,” Feduccia said. “Catching-wise, there's no really good method. If you think it's a strike or ball, just go with that.”
• High-leverage reliever Griffin Jax allowed a leadoff single in the second inning then struck out the next three hitters he faced.
• Back at Charlotte Sports Park, there were five live batting practice sessions scheduled for Sunday morning. Nick Martinez was slated to work three innings, Ryan Pepiot was due to work two and relievers Bryan Baker, Kevin Kelly and Hunter Bigge were slated for an inning apiece.