ST. PETERSBURG -- Add another pitching injury to the list for the Rays.
Four days after announcing that starter Ryan Pepiot will soon undergo season-ending surgery on his right hip, the Rays placed left-hander Steven Matz on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday due to left elbow inflammation. But they believe they avoided a more serious injury, as initial imaging revealed no structural issues beyond the inflammation.
“Hopefully, it could just be the shortest stay possible. It's a fluid situation,” Matz said. “We're going to be communicating back and forth.”
Matz showed no signs of discomfort in his last two outings: a seven-inning win in Cleveland on April 27 and another quality start in a victory against the Giants on Sunday at Tropicana Field. But he said he started to feel sore during his sixth and final inning last time out, and he reported that feeling as soon as he arrived at the ballpark on Monday.
Manager Kevin Cash believed that was the right decision by Matz, giving the Rays a chance to get out in front of whatever the issue might be.
“He wanted to continue pitching, but he suggested that he felt something in his elbow. We got it checked out,” Cash said. “Good reports by all measures, but we'll see. We'll shut him down from throwing for a couple days and get a ball back in his hand. But [we are] optimistic right now.”
Matz’s IL assignment was made retroactive to Monday. The Rays selected the contract of right-hander Chase Solesky from Triple-A Durham to take Matz’s place on the active roster.
The Rays have already had to get creative with their rotation due to injuries. Pepiot’s injury created a spot in the Opening Day rotation for right-hander Joe Boyle, who is also sidelined due to right elbow inflammation but is about to begin a Minor League rehab assignment.
Boyle’s injury prompted the Rays to put right-hander Jesse Scholtens in their rotation as a starter/bulk-inning reliever. Now, reliever Griffin Jax is in the process of moving out of the bullpen and getting built up as a starter to take the day that had belonged to Scholtens.
It wasn’t immediately clear how Tampa Bay will temporarily replace Matz, who would have been lined up to pitch Friday night against the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Cash said the Rays were “not quite there yet” as far as finalizing their rotation plans. One option would be splitting up Jax and Scholtens rather than having Scholtens pitch multiple innings after Jax.
Matz was off to a strong start for the Rays in his full-time return to the starting rotation. The 34-year-old is 4-1 with a 3.86 ERA in 37 1/3 innings over seven starts, and Tampa Bay is 6-1 in games he has pitched. Matz said it was “hard to say” if moving back into a starting role had anything to do with his injury, especially since he has dealt with similar soreness previously.
“That's obviously a workload difference, but I think they've done a really good job with building me up and communicating,” Matz said. “But it's just about being smart on the front end and just trying to put the fire out while we can.”
Signed to a non-roster Minor League deal during the offseason, Solesky was called up to the Majors for the first time. He will be available out of the bullpen to cover multiple innings, if needed.
A native of Fort Pierce, Fla., who often came to games at Tropicana Field growing up and once pitched here for an East Coast Pro showcase, Solesky was thrilled to share the news with his fiancée, parents and other family and friends who made the trip for his potential debut.
“It was just kind of like the accumulation of eight years of really hard work,” the 28-year-old Solesky said. “It’s more or less like I feel like I'm more excited for everyone who supported me along the way than myself.”
Selected by the White Sox in the 21st round of the 2019 Draft, Solesky has spent parts of seven seasons in the Minors with Chicago and Washington, with a stop in the independent Atlantic League between those stints.
Solesky was 2-1 with a 6.57 ERA and a 1.70 WHIP in 24 2/3 innings over six starts for Durham. His most recent outing was last Thursday, when he held Jacksonville to two runs on six hits while striking out six over 5 1/3 innings.
As he packed his bag for the big leagues late Monday night, Solesky sat on the floor of Durham’s clubhouse and spent a few minutes reflecting on the journey that brought him to the Trop.
“Just the amount of gratitude I have for the moment is just crazy,” Solesky said.