Rays acquire Sampen from Dodgers for Schultz

January 8th, 2019
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jaime Schultz during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles Friday, Sept. 7, 2018, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)Chris O'Meara/AP

When the Rays decided to designate for assignment last Friday, they knew there was a strong chance that the 27-year-old right-hander would be claimed off waivers. Then, on Tuesday, the club traded Schultz to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Caleb Sampen.
In his Major League debut, Schultz showed his potential by striking out the side in the ninth inning against the Athletics on May 29. After the game, he was sent back down to Triple-A Durham before returning to the Majors in July.
Schultz posted a 3.97 ERA in 11 1/3 innings that month, but he was then plagued by walks and struggled to record outs over the last two months of the season, recording a 6.14 ERA in August and a 7.59 ERA in September. He ended the 2018 season by giving up four earned runs to the Yankees on Sep. 27.

In Sampen, 22, the Rays receive another young arm who is in the beginning stages of his career, but showed some flashes in 2018. He was selected by the Dodgers in the 20th round of the 2018 Draft and spent the year at Rookie-level Ogden, where he recorded 43 strikeouts and a 5.04 ERA in 30 1/3 innings of work.
Sampen is the son of former Major League pitcher Bill Sampen.