TORONTO -- Tampa Bay selected catcher Nick Ciuffo, who is the Rays' No. 25-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline, from Triple-A Durham before Monday night's game against the Blue Jays..
Catcher Adam Moore was placed on the restricted list due to improper documentation for his passport, making room for Ciuffo on the 40-man roster.
In addition, right-hander Jake Faria has been added to the taxi squad, and will be recalled on Tuesday, and outfielder Mallex Smith (viral infection) was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list.
Ciuffo, who will be making his Major League debut, has had a whirlwind year, starting at last year's Winter Meetings when the Rays gambled by not protecting their first pick of the 2013 Draft. The Rays were pleased that no teams selected him in the Rule 5 Draft.
In the spring, Ciuffo got served a 50-game suspension without pay for testing positive for marijuana.
Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters that Ciuffo had shown accountability in the aftermath of his suspension, and he's shown improvements offensively and defensively this season.
Ciuffo hit .262 with five home runs and 28 RBIs in 60 games for Triple-A Durham. Behind the plate, the threw out 43.2 percent of attempted basestealers.
"It's been a long year," Ciuffo said. "It's been a really long year. Starting off February with the news [of the suspension] being released. I think as a person, I've grown a lot. As a player, I've grown a lot over the past however many months. A lot of that had to do with some of the stuff I was mandated to do by MLB as far as seeing people and talking about what was going on in the personal life. Learn how to handle off-the-field stress.
"I've always been good at handling on-the-field stuff. But off the field, I kind of just pushed it aside. Addressing those issues has been really good, along with having a good group of guys in Durham accepting me, and me putting the past in the past."
As for Smith, the Rays outfielder told reporters he was happy to be past his ordeal, in which he dealt with neck soreness and had trouble swallowing.
Smith said he had broken bones in the past, but, this "was the worst pain I ever had."
Cash visited Smith in the hospital and noted that what Smith went through "knocked him on his butt."
"You don't see Mallex quiet very often," Cash said. "And he was quiet."