18 Joey Wendle 3B

Wendle and the Rays avoided arbitration with a one-year, $2.25 million deal Friday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Wendle bounced back from a poor 2019 campaign with a strong season for the 2020 AL pennant winners, hitting .286/.342/.435 in 50 games. His four homers and eight steals would have translated to 10.8 homers and 21.6 steals over a full, 162-game season, both of which would have been career highs.

Wendle is not in the lineup for Game 4 of the World Series against the Dodgers on Saturday, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Wendle will head to the bench with left-hander Julio Urias set to start for the Dodgers. Mike Brosseau will take over at third base in his absence.

Wendle went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run in Tuesday's win during Game 3 of the ALCS against the Astros.

Wendle had gone 0-for-9 with six strikeouts over the last four games, but he took part in the Rays' five-run rally during the sixth inning Tuesday to put the team within one win of advancing to the World Series. The 30-year-old has a .357 OBP with two RBI and one stolen base during these playoffs.

Wendle is out of the lineup Wednesday for Game 2 of the Rays' wild-card series with the Blue Jays, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Wendle ended the regular season in an everyday role at third base, but he may morph into more of a utility man during the postseason with Yandy Diaz (hamstring) back from the injured list. Though Wendle drew the start at the hot corner and went 0-for-2 with a walk and a run Tuesday in Tampa Bay's 3-1 win, he'll cede the position to Diaz in Game 2.

Wendle went 2-for-5 with a go-ahead two-run single and a run in a win over the Phillies on Friday.

Wendle snapped a 4-4 tie in the eighth inning with his timely single that plated Hunter Renfroe and Yoshi Tsutsugo, which ultimately proved to be the margin of victory for the Rays. The two-hit effort was Wendle's fourth in the last five contests, part of a torrid seven-game stretch during which he's hitting .480 with two doubles, two home runs, six RBI, two stolen bases, one walk and three runs across 27 plate appearances.

Wendle went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Mets.

Wendle opened the scoring with a solo shot in the second inning off Mets starter Michael Wacha. The infielder now has four homers, eight stolen bases, 14 RBI and 22 runs scored in 48 contests.

Wendle went 2-for-4 with a stolen base Tuesday in the Rays' 5-2 loss to the Mets.

The 30-year-old came through with his third straight two-hit day, lifting his season-long batting average to .280. Wendle isn't known for being a prolific speedster, but he was once again opportunistic as a base runner Tuesday, as he and Willy Adames executed a successful double steal in the sixth inning. He's now up to eight stolen bases on the season, matching his total from 2019 in almost 100 fewer plate appearances.

Wendle went 2-for-4 with a double and a stolen base in a win over the Mets on Monday. He was also caught stealing on a second attempt.

Wendle's rollercoaster campaign at the plate continued its latest upswing Monday, with his multi-hit effort pushing his line over the last nine contests to an impressive .364/.389/.545 (36 plate appearances). The versatile infielder now has a trio of two-hit efforts over the last four contests, and he's lifted his season averaged 25 points to .275 during the aforementioned hot stretch.

Wendle went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and another RBI during Thursday's victory over Baltimore.

Wendle evened the score, 6-6, with a two-run shot against Travis Lakins in the fourth inning. The 30-year-old now has hit six home runs and scored 21 runs this season while batting .261/.321/.401.

Wendle will hit the bench Tuesday against the Nationals, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Wendle sits after starting 15 of the last 16 games. He hit just .220/.292/.339 over that stretch. Mike Brosseau will start at third base, Wendle's most common recent position.

Wendle, who went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk and a stolen base in a win over the Red Sox on Friday, is 0-for-20 in five September games outside of his trio of two-hit efforts.

It's been a somewhat unusual ride for Wendle since the calendar flipped, as the normally above-average contact hitter has also struck out on multiple occasions in three games and 10 times overall. Wendle has had moments this season where he's looked like the hitter that slashed .300/.354/.435 over 545 plate appearances back in 2018, but there have also been stretches bearing resemblance to his career-worst 2019 campaign in which he produced an unsightly .231/.293/.340 line in 75 games. Wendle's defensive versatility does continue to afford him regular playing time, as he's now seen time for at least a portion of a game on 18 occasions at second base, 20 at third base, and eight at shortstop.

Wendle is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Nationals, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The lefty-hitting Wendle will head to the bench despite a righty (Anibal Sanchez) pitching for the opposition. Brandon Lowe is starting at the keystone while Yoshi Tsutsugo handles the hot corner. Wendle is hitting .190 with one home run, two steals, one walk and 11 strikeouts in 42 at-bats over his last 10 games.

Wendle went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and a stolen base in Friday's win over the Marlins.

Wendle is not capturing many headlines but has a couple homers and three steals now with a palatable .269 batting average. He's in a good spot, batting regularly in the top third of the Rays' order against right-handed pitching, and best of all for fantasy, Wendle has three-position eligibility.

Wendle went 1-for-6 with a solo home run in a win over the Marlins on Sunday.

Wendle's leadoff 399-foot shot to right field turned out to be harbinger of an offensive barrage for the Rays in their 12-run outburst. The versatile veteran has now hit safely in 10 consecutive starts, a stretch during which he's generated a .325/.341/.525 slash line with five doubles, Sunday's homer, six RBI, one walk and six runs.

Wendle went 2-for-4 with two doubles, two RBI and a run scored Saturday against the Marlins.

Wendle came to bat with the bases loaded in the eighth inning and delivered with a two-run double to put the Rays up 4-0. He played a big part in the victory, as he also scored a run to put the team up 2-0 in the seventh frame. With the performance, Wendle extended his hitting streak to eight games and is now hitting .301/.356/.458 across 90 plate appearances this season.

Wendle will start at second base and will bat sixth Monday against the Blue Jays, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Wendle has seemingly supplanted Hunter Renfroe as a mainstay in the Tampa Bay lineup against right-handed pitching. Brandon Lowe will shift to the right field while Renfroe sits for the second straight day, paving the way for Wendle to pick up another start at the keystone. Over his 58 plate appearances versus righties this season, Wendle is slashing .264/.328/.434 (111 wRC+).

Wendle will start at third base and bat sixth Saturday against the Blue Jays.

The 30-year-old was originally stationed on the bench for Saturday's contest, but he'll join the starting nine with Yandy Diaz (head) a late scratch. Wendle has a .295/.368/.459 slash line through 68 plate appearances and could see more consistent at-bats if Diaz is forced to miss time.

Wendle went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 10-5 win over the Yankees.

Wendle tied the game at two with a two-run double in the fifth and gave the Rays a 5-4 lead with a run-scoring single an inning later. The infielder is slashing .281/.349/.456 on the year.

Wendle went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in a loss to the Blue Jays on Friday.

Wendle was also charged with a pair of errors, so it was a mixed bag of a night overall for the infielder. Wendle now has a modest three-game hitting streak going, which comes on the heels of an 0-for-8 skid earlier in the month.

Wendle went 1-for-3 with a game-tying RBI triple in a win over the Red Sox on Monday.

Wendle's one hit of the night made an impact, as it plated Yandy Diaz in the fifth inning to knot the score up at 4-4. The triple was Wendle's second of August, and it snapped a modest 0-for-7 stretch that had encompassed the last three games in which he'd logged an official at-bat. The 30-year-old seems much more like himself in the batter's box than at any point during an injury-marred 2019, as he's now slashing an impressive .289/.357/.500 across his first 42 plate appearances and sports a minuscule, career-low 9.5 percent strikeout rate.