26 Ji-Man Choi 1B

Choi is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Royals, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

With southpaw Danny Duffy on the mound for Kansas City, Choi and fellow lefty-hitting regular Kevin Kiermaier will hit the bench in the series finale as the Rays stock up on extra right-handed bats. Choi started in both ends of Wednesday's doubleheader loss, going 0-for-4 in the early game and 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in the nightcap.

Choi went 2-for-4 with a two-run double and a run in a win over the Royals on Monday.

Choi gave the Rays some breathing room with his eighth-inning two-bagger, which brought home Tommy Pham and Brandon Lowe. The 27-year-old recently dealt with a calf issue, which played a part in his five-game absence heading into Monday. His fifth multi-hit game of April boosted his season line to an impressive .299/.400/.463 across 80 plate appearances.

Choi is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Red Sox, Josh Tolentino of The Athletic reports.

With the left-handed David Price taking the mound Saturday for the Red Sox, Choi will hit the pine. Yandy Diaz, Choi's usual replacement in this scenario, will take over at first base and bat leadoff for the Rays.

Choi is starting at designated hitter and batting third Friday in Boston.

He missed time with a personal matter and a minor calf injury, so this will be his first action since April 20. The Red Sox are starting right-handed journeyman Josh A. Smith, so this makes for a very appealing matchup for the lefty-hitting Choi.

Choi said Wednesday that his calf is feeling fine, Josh Tolentino of The Athletic reports.

Choi was activated from the restricted list ahead of Wednesday's series finale against the Royals, though he ultimately wasn't used, with the Rays instead turning to Michael Perez at first base after Joey Wendle (wrist) exited with an injury. It doesn't sound like the decision was injury related, and with an off-day Thursday, Choi should be back in the lineup for Friday's series opener against the Red Sox.