ST. PETERSBURG -- Michael Grove’s last appearance in a Major League uniform came 630 days ago, wearing a Dodgers uniform, when he recorded one out to finish the eighth inning of a lopsided loss to the Padres in Game 2 of the National League Division Series.
The next day, Grove was removed from the Dodgers’ NLDS roster. The next spring, he underwent surgery on his right shoulder to repair a torn labrum. Eight months later, he was squeezed off the Dodgers’ roster and let loose into free agency.
Frustrated by the lack of progress in his recovery and forced to find a new home, Grove wasn’t always so sure he’d make it back.
Then the Rays came calling, setting in motion the sequence of events that led Grove to the mound on Saturday night at Tropicana Field. The right-hander kept his emotions in check and delivered the outs Tampa Bay needed, breezing through three innings while striking out four batters in the Rays’ fourth straight win, a 4-2 decision over the D-backs.
“Just getting back here was obviously a huge goal of mine,” Grove said. “There were some times, looking back, where I didn't know how likely that was going to be. So, certainly not taking it for granted.”
Grove allowed just one hit, a two-out single to Gabriel Moreno, as he retired nine of the 10 batters he faced. He finished all four of his strikeouts with sliders and needed only 34 pitches (26 strikes) to carry the largest workload of any Rays pitcher in Saturday’s well-executed, walk-free bullpen game.
Right-hander Cole Sulser worked the first two innings. Grove got the Rays through the fifth. Casey Legumina picked up five outs. Kevin Kelly finished the seventh and handled the eighth, allowing only a solo homer by Ketel Marte. Then Bryan Baker did his thing in the ninth to record his 21st save, tied with Mason Miller for second-most in the Majors.
The Rays produced enough offense to back up their bullpen. Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda delivered big swings, as Caminero launched his fifth homer in the last three games in the first inning, and Aranda broke a 1-1 tie with a two-run shot in the fifth. A small-ball rally in the sixth gave the relief corps some breathing room.
The win improved the Rays’ record to 47-33, putting them percentage points ahead of the 48-34 Yankees (.588 to .585) for the best record in the American League, and first place in the AL East for the first time since June 12.
Rays manager Kevin Cash said he gave the relievers a “heads up” in Friday’s pre-series meeting that Saturday would be a traditional bullpen game, as the Rays pushed back Shane McClanahan’s scheduled start to manage the left-hander’s workload.
The plan wound up including three innings from Grove. The 29-year-old right-hander, who was 7-7 with a 5.48 ERA for the Dodgers from 2022-24, signed a Major League deal with the Rays in April. He liked the fit with the organization and everything he’d heard about their pitching development, but it was also a convenient pairing: Grove moved to Tampa in 2023.
Grove went on the 60-day injured list to finish his recovery, then mostly pitched in two-inning bursts during a Minor League rehab assignment. He remained in Triple-A after completing his rehab until the Rays summoned him on Thursday to replace injured left-hander Steven Matz.
It was the call Grove had been waiting for, the one he wasn’t sure would ever come again.
“It’s been, it feels like, a long time. I don't know exactly how many days, but it's been a while,” he said Friday. “I'm just pumped to have the opportunity.”