Civale didn't factor into the decision Friday against Baltimore, allowing one run on six hits and a walk over 5.1 innings. He struck out three.
Civale was sharp Friday, blanking the Orioles for five innings before he was ultimately charged with a lone run in the sixth. The 28-year-old Civale has been pitching better of late, allowing just three runs over 10.1 innings in his last two starts after struggling to an 8.48 ERA in his previous six outings. Overall, he's 2-4 on the year with a 5.37 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 60:18 K:BB across 62 innings. Civale's currently lined up for a rematch with Baltimore at home in his next start.
Arozarena is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Orioles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Arozarena will get a break after starting the last four games for Tampa Bay, going 2-for-12 with one RBI in that stretch. The 29-year-old outfielder will cede left field duties to Jonny DeLuca, who will bat fifth while Jose Siri and Richie Palacios round out Tampa Bay's outfield.
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Rays' Justin Sterner: Contract selected by Tampa Bay
Rotowire
The Rays selected Sterner's contract from Triple-A Durham on Friday.
The right-hander has a 3.60 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 33:8 K:BB over 25 innings for Durham this year to earn his first taste of the big leagues. Sterner should fill a low-leverage bullpen role for the Rays.
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Rays' Tyler Alexander: Optioned to Triple-A
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The Rays optioned Alexander to Triple-A Durham on Friday, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.
It was just two weeks ago that Alexander flirted with a perfect game in Toronto, but that outing sticks out like a sore thumb on his game log. The lefty allowed four runs over 4.2 frames versus the Athletics on Thursday to push his ERA on the season up to 6.19. With Zach Eflin (back) poised to rejoin the Rays' rotation soon, Alexander has lost his spot.
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Rays' Jose Caballero: Logs 20th steal
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Caballero went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts, two runs scored and a stolen base Thursday against the Athletics.
This line is indicative of Caballero's skill set, as he's striking out at a 29.3 percent clip and has just a .306 on-base percentage. However, he has already racked up 20 stolen bases, only the second player to hit that mark at this point in the campaign. Caballero's playing time could be in danger upon the return of Taylor Walls (hip), but for now, he fills a key role for both the Rays and fantasy managers.
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Rays' Isaac Paredes: Smacks 10th homer
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Paredes went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk Thursday against the Athletics.
Paredes tallied his 10th homer of the season and third in May, and he's hitting .301 with 15 RBI and 10 runs scored across 24 contests on the month. Paredes remains locked into either the third or fourth spot in the Rays' order, giving him plenty of opportunities to rack up counting stats.
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Rays' Tyler Alexander: Strikes out seven in bulk role
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Alexander didn't factor into the decision Thursday against the Athletics, allowing four runs on seven hits over 4.2 innings. He struck out seven.
While his seven punchouts matched a season high, Alexander struggled initially after opener Shawn Armstrong delivered two scoreless innings. The southpaw allowed four runs in the third, including a pair on a Shea Langeliers homer. It's been a tough stretch for Alexander of late -- he's now given up 21 runs in his last four outings (24 innings). Overall, he's 2-3 with a 6.19 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 48:13 K:BB across 56.2 innings this year.
Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have made a joint agreement to extend Franco's stay on administrative leave through July 14, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
An agreement between the parties was originally reached prior to Opening Day, but the original term was set to end June 1. Authorities have until July 5 to make any charging decisions against Franco, which could provide some additional context for his availability for this season and beyond.
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Rays' Jose Siri: Homers twice in extra-innings win
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Siri went 2-for-5 with a pair of solo home runs in Thursday's 6-5 win over the A's in 12 innings.
Siri extended Tampa's lead to 3-0 in the second inning, blasting a 428-foot solo shot off Hogan Harris before tying the game at 4-4 with his second homer off Oakland closer Mason Miller in the ninth. The 28-year-old Siri had been losing out on playing time to Jonny DeLuca, though the former has now gone 5-for-11 in his last three games while DeLuca has just one hit in his last 15 at-bats. Still, with Josh Lowe (oblique) aiming for a return early next week, Siri may have to settle for a short-side platoon role. He's slashing .188/.276/.338 with five homers, 17 RBI, 18 runs scored and seven steals through 45 games.
Manager Kevin Cash said that Eflin (back) will throw a light bullpen session Thursday and a "ramped-up bullpen session" Sunday before the Rays decide his next steps, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.
Cash noted that the Rays will wait and see how Eflin feels following Sunday's session, but if his lower-back injury isn't providing any complications, he could be cleared to return from the 15-day injured list next week. When Eflin was placed on the IL on May 20, Cash estimated that the right-hander would need 2-to-4 weeks to make a full recovery, and Eflin currently looks to be tracking toward the short end of that timeline.
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Rays' Josh Lowe: Aiming to return Tuesday
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Rays manager Kevin Cash said Thursday that Lowe (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Durham this weekend and hopes to be activated from the 10-day injured list Tuesday versus the Marlins, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.
Last week, Lowe made his second trip to the IL this season with a right oblique strain. The strain was deemed mild, allowing him to resume baseball activities ahead of this weekend's rehab assignment. If Lowe does indeed return Tuesday, he will have missed just a little more than the minimum 10 days.
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Rays' Jeffrey Springs: Resumes throwing
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Springs (elbow/lat) threw long toss from 90 feet Thursday, Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Springs was removed from his second rehab start in the rookie-level Florida Complex League this past Saturday due to lat soreness, but it's a good sign that he was able to resume throwing five days later. According to Ackert, Springs made about 45 throws Thursday with no apparent issues. It's not clear when the left-hander will be ready to resume a rehab assignment. Springs is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, which he underwent last April.
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Rays' Jonathan Aranda: Sitting against lefty
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Aranda is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics.
The lefty-hitting Aranda will hit the bench for the second day in a row, this time against a lefty (Hogan Harris) after he sat out against right-hander Joey Estes in Wednesday's 4-3 win. Aranda came off the bench Wednesday and delivered a pinch-hit RBI single, lifting his average up to .237 over 14 games on the season. Harold Ramirez will get another turn at designated hitter Thursday.
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Rays' Richie Palacios: Resting against lefty
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Palacios is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics.
The lefty-hitting Palacios will retreat to the bench after he went 1-for-7 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored while starting in right field and serving as the Rays' leadoff hitter each of the past two days. Jonny DeLuca will step in for Palacios in right field.
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Rays' Brandon Lowe: Sitting out against lefty
Rotowire
Lowe is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics.
The lefty-hitting Lowe will head to the bench for the series finale while the Athletics bring southpaw Hogan Harris to the hill. Amed Rosario will fill in at second base in place of Lowe, who is slashing just .174/.296/.391 in eight games since being reinstated from the 10-day injured list May 20.
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Rays' Ben Rortvedt: Idle against lefty
Rotowire
Rortvedt is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics.
The Rays are finishing off their series with Oakland with a day game after a night game and are facing off against a lefty starter (Hogan Harris), so the lefty-hitting Rortvedt will get a breather. Alex Jackson will step in behind the plate after Rortvedt caught six innings of Wednesday's 4-3 win while going 0-for-2 at the dish.
