Rays give Zobrist an off-day against Twins

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Ben Zobrist was scheduled to make the trip to Fort Myers for the Rays' Sunday afternoon contest against the Twins, but after playing seven innings on Saturday against the Red Sox, he took the day off.

Zobrist, who will soon be leaving for the World Baseball Classic, had expressed a desire to play in all the games this week. But Rays bench coach Davey Martinez convinced him otherwise.

"He just wanted to see how my body felt today," Zobrist said shortly before the team boarded the bus for Fort Myers. "That it wasn't too sore after playing seven [innings] yesterday. And I feel fine."

Zobrist said he could have played on Sunday.

"I feel fine," Zobrist said. "I'm not even sore. I felt more sore after our four-hour practice the other day."