Suddenly, a crowded bullpen picture has become clearer
The homecoming will have to wait as Tampa native Alex Faedo will begin the season on the Injured List with a shoulder issue.
Faedo, 29, came to the Rays in early February in a minor trade after being designated for assignment. The Detroit Tigers originally selected Faedo in the 40th round of the 2014 draft but Faedo opted to go to the University of Florida instead and had a tremendous collegiate career. In 2017, the Tigers selected Faedo once again, but this time in the first round and 18th overall.
At one point, Faedo was among the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, but injuries and inconsistent performance have hampered his career and he was eventually moved to the bullpen. Thus far over his three years in the big leagues, Faedo has a 4.51 ERA | 4.80 FIP with a 20.9 K% & 9.7 BB% over 175 2⁄3 innings pitched spread over 64 appearances (30 starts).
The Tigers designated Faedo for assignment on January 29th to clear a roster spot for free agent signee Tommy Kahnle; the Rays acquired Faedo a week later for minor league catcher Enderson Delgado.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, the Rays don’t seem too concerned about Faedo’s injury with the MRI not ringing any alarm bells.
“Right now, we’re still (expecting) a very small amount of time down,” manager Kevin Cash said. “So shut down for a little bit, get a ball back in his hand. Nothing was too alarming on the MRI.”
With no options remaining and a spot on the 40-man roster, Faedo seemed like a lock for the Rays Opening Day roster; his injury suddenly creates an opening that the Rays have plenty of internal options to fill.
With Opening Day just a week from today, the Rays have more questions than answers when it comes to which 13 pitchers they’ll start the season with. There are currently six starting pitchers, and the team has been adamant they will not roll out a six-man starting rotation. However, if they choose to stick with the six starters, that leaves seven bullpen spots.
Four of those spots are locked up by Pete Fairbanks, Edwin Uceta, Garrett Cleavinger, and Manuel Rodriguez, all of whom are out of options or are established All-Stars.
That leaves three spots for a large group of deserving pitchers, who thanks to having options may have to start the year in the minor leagues despite deserving to be on a Major League roster.
Here are the players the Rays still have in camp that are competing for those three (or possible four spots, should the Rays trade a SP):
40-Man Roster
- Mason Englert
- Kevin Kelly
- Mason Montgomery
- Mike Vasil
- Hunter Bigge
- Eric Orze
Non-Roster Invite
- Jonathan Hernandez
- Connor Seabold
- Nathan Wiles
Among those on the 40-man roster, the Rays have options on Montgomery, Orze, Kelly, Englert, and Bigge. Meanwhile, Mike Vasil was a Rule 5 selection, so the team would have to either work out a trade with the Mets or place him on waivers.
The Rays have a week to decide.