NORTH PORT, Fla. -- The Rays reported to CoolToday Park on Tuesday morning for their Spring Training finale against the Braves with all of their Opening Day roster questions answered.
Some decisions were expected, like top prospect Carson Williams becoming the regular shortstop to begin the season. Others came as a surprise, like starter Ryan Pepiot going on the injured list with right hip inflammation and Joe Boyle slotting into the Opening Day rotation to start Saturday’s game against the Cardinals in St. Louis.
Williams seemed like the most likely choice to take over Tampa Bay’s starting shortstop job when Taylor Walls went down with a right oblique strain late in camp that will sideline him for at least three or four weeks. But manager Kevin Cash made it official on Tuesday morning, saying Williams will play regularly while Ben Williamson remains in a frequently-used utility infield role.
“When Walls went down, I think it was basically [that] we were fairly confident with Carson being the right guy. We just wanted to make sure all options and bases were covered,” Cash said. “Carson's had a really good spring. We've seen the improvements that he's made on both sides of the ball, and [we’re] excited for him to be in there Opening Day for us.”
Williams has repeatedly said that he learned a lot from his initial, earlier-than-expected stint as Tampa Bay’s starting shortstop down the stretch last season, and he took those lessons into his offseason work. He altered his approach to stay more up the middle, and he sped up his clock on defense to more effectively turn double plays.
Now, he’ll get another chance to see how it all works at the highest level as he takes the field Thursday at Busch Stadium.
“Of course, under the circumstances, it's a bummer. I'm really rooting for Walls to come back strong. But I'm gonna take this opportunity and I'm gonna go try to help the ballclub win some games,” said Williams, whose parents will travel to St. Louis to witness his first MLB Opening Day in person. “To be on the Opening Day roster has been a dream of mine for a really long time, and I'm really excited that they trust me and they believe in me.”
The news on Pepiot was a surprise, considering the right-hander had been scheduled to start the Rays’ final spring game on Tuesday afternoon. He will receive an injection to alleviate discomfort in his hip, but he is not expected to miss a significant amount of time due to the workload he built up during Spring Training.
Pepiot managed the injury throughout the spring, Cash said, but the Rays preferred him taking a “very short” IL stint to him trying to push through it any further.
Pepiot had been scheduled to start the Rays’ fourth game of the season next Monday in Milwaukee, but his injury allowed Tampa Bay to shuffle its staff. Veteran Nick Martinez, who had a rough spring, will move back to the fourth spot in the rotation to give him more time to rest a sore right hamstring that he’s been pitching through.
Martinez’s issue is considered to be minor, with no effect on his delivery or pitch usage, but he only stands to benefit from having two more days to rest and undergo treatment.
Boyle, who was optioned to Minor League camp on Friday, will return to join the season-opening rotation. So the new order of the Rays’ starting five is Drew Rasmussen, Boyle, Steven Matz, Martinez and Shane McClanahan.
After a relatively healthy Spring Training, the Rays wound up having to recall three players they previously optioned to Triple-A to assume spots on their Opening Day roster: Williams, Boyle and Richie Palacios, who will be the club’s regular second baseman against right-handed pitchers while Gavin Lux is sidelined with a right shoulder impingement.
Rounding out their roster decisions, the Rays finalized the composition of their bullpen on Tuesday morning. Griffin Jax, Garrett Cleavinger and Bryan Baker were already set as the club’s high-leverage trio. They will be joined by right-handers Cole Sulser, Mason Englert, Yoendrys Gómez, Kevin Kelly and left-hander Ian Seymour, with right-hander Hunter Bigge being optioned to Triple-A Durham.
Sulser and Gómez were out of Minor League options and showed encouraging signs this spring. Englert and Seymour stood out as potential multi-inning options. Kelly has pitched well in the past for the Rays, and his sidearm delivery gives Cash a weapon against right-handed hitters.
Sending out Bigge, Cash acknowledged, was a “tough conversation.” He will pitch for Triple-A Durham, with an emphasis on using the kick-change he developed over the offseason. He’s bound to help the Rays at some point, but having Minor League options left him on the outside looking in.
“He had a good spring,” Cash said. “You can make a case that he has got just as much upside as any pitcher in our bullpen.”