The Rays’ rotation took a significant hit Friday as it lost left-handed starter Shane McClanahan to the 15-day injured list due to left forearm tightness. Right-hander Alex Cook was recalled from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move.
The IL placement comes one day after McClanahan allowed four earned runs over five innings in a 6-0 loss to the Rangers. It also marks McClanahan’s second trip to the IL this season. He missed a couple of weeks last month with mid-back tightness.
McClanahan said he felt "a little tightness, maybe fatigue" after the fifth inning of his Thursday start. He is not sure if he will undergo imaging, but he doesn't think this setback is too serious.
"As of last night, we made the decision as a team to not let this compound, not let this snowball and kind of try to nip it in the bud quick," he said.
McClanahan has a 3.36 ERA over 118 innings in 2026 after missing the past two years due to multiple arm injuries. That includes Tommy John surgery, which he underwent in August 2023.
The 29-year-old has completed fewer than six innings in each of his past seven starts and produced a 4.78 ERA over that span. The Rays, who entered Friday with the best record in the American League (83-57) and three games ahead of the Yankees in the AL East, rank fifth in the Majors in rotation ERA (3.61). However, many of those arms -- Drew Rasmussen, Nick Martinez, Griffin Jax and Ian Seymour -- have already surpassed or are nearing their career high in innings pitched as a big league starter.