ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays reinstated left-hander Steven Matz from the 15-day injured list on Wednesday morning and were pleased to have him back in their rotation after he pitched four strong innings to start their 5-3 win against the Orioles at Tropicana Field.
Matz's return was part of a flurry of roster moves for the club, which also placed infielder Ben Williamson on the 10-day IL due to a low back strain, selected just-acquired infielder Oliver Dunn from Triple-A Durham and optioned right-hander Chase Solesky to Durham.
The Rays’ 40-man roster is now at 39 players.
The team also received some good news on Yandy Díaz after the veteran DH exited Tuesday night’s game when he was hit on both hands by a Yennier Cano fastball. Imaging came back negative, although Díaz was still dealing with some soreness in his right ring finger and did not play Wednesday afternoon.
Manager Kevin Cash said Díaz was “adamant” that he’d be OK, but the team preferred to have him rest on Wednesday and Thursday (a team off-day) before potentially getting him back in the lineup on Friday night at Yankee Stadium.
Matz had been on the IL since May 5 due to left elbow inflammation, which led to him feeling soreness in the sixth inning of his May 3 start. An MRI exam revealed no structural issues, though, so Matz took a few days off from throwing before getting back on the mound with no issues last week.
Matz didn’t look like he missed a beat as he held the Orioles to one run on three hits and two walks while striking out five over four relatively efficient innings in Wednesday’s series finale.
“He was really sharp,” Cash said. “Just like the guy we saw before the injury.”
Cash said the Rays would be careful with Matz’s workload in his first outing back, considering the time he missed, and indeed, they pulled him after 67 pitches. But they hope he’ll be back to normal -- or close to it -- when he makes his next start in Baltimore next week.
“I'm happy,” Matz said. “It took me a little bit there to kind of get my legs under me, but I felt really good.”
As expected, the Rays used right-hander Jesse Scholtens in a bulk-inning role behind Matz on Wednesday afternoon. Scholtens has been working as a starter/bulk-inning reliever, and while Cash said they “haven’t totally got through” Scholtens’ role moving forward, he could provide length out of the bullpen with the rotation now made whole.
“Jesse's done a tremendous job,” Cash said. “It's a good conversation to have, just because with Matzy coming back, we've got a lot of options.”
Williamson has been sidelined since Friday by a back issue, and he was notably absent from the lineup against a left-handed starter on Monday. The versatile infielder said he felt his back tighten up around his spine while bending over to field a ground ball in his last appearance, and it hasn’t fully loosened up since.
“It's feeling tight, but a little bit better,” Williamson said Wednesday morning. “I've dealt with spasms in the past, and usually it's like four or five days, but this one just felt like it was tighter for a little bit longer.”
The Rays backdated Williamson’s IL stint to Sunday and plan to reevaluate him after their upcoming road trip to New York and Baltimore.
In the meantime, Tampa Bay promoted Dunn shortly after acquiring him from the White Sox late Tuesday night in a trade for lefty reliever Joe Rock. Dunn, 28, played 55 games in the Majors for the Brewers in 2024-25, and he was slashing .295/.393/.545 in 41 games for Triple-A Charlotte this season.
Dunn’s top trait is his defensive versatility, as he can play all around the infield and has bounced out to left field as well. Cash said he came with the reputation of being “a plus everywhere you put him.” That flexibility should help the Rays while they are without Williamson for a few days and without right fielder Jake Fraley for six to eight weeks.
They had to immediately test Dunn’s speed on his first day with the team. Cash called upon Dunn to pinch-run for Junior Caminero during the Rays’ four-run rally in the eighth, and he sped around from first to score the tying run on a double by Jonathan Aranda.
The Rays’ scouting information suggested Dunn had some wheels, with nine steals in 10 attempts this season, and Dunn was happy to provide additional clarity.
“I asked him, and he goes, 'Oh yeah, but I was nine of nine. I got picked off at first base, so that doesn't count,’” Cash said. “But I was happy that he's got some speed.”