25 Yoshitomo Tsutsugo 1B

Tsutsugo isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Tsutsugo will be out of the lineup for a third straight game after he hit .154 with one RBI and 17 strikeouts in his first 39 at-bats this year. Austin Meadows will serve as the designated hitter Saturday while Brett Phillips enters the lineup in center field.

Tsutsugo is out of the lineup Friday against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Tsutsugo is 6-for-39 with 17 strikeouts through 12 games this season and finds himself on the bench for the second straight contest Friday. Brandon Lowe is batting third as the designated hitter while Mike Brosseau starts at second base for Tampa Bay.

Tsutsugo isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Tsutsugo has gone just 1-for-12 with six strikeouts in the last four games. Austin Meadows will serve as the designated hitter Thursday with Manuel Margot starting in left field.

Tsutsugo will serve as the Rays' designated hitter and bat seventh Wednesday against the Rangers.

Tsutsugo had been the Rays' primary leadoff option against right-handed pitching to begin the season, but he appears to have lost hold of that role after providing a .147/.216/.176 slash line through his first 38 plate appearances. For the second straight day, Tsutsugo will hit in the bottom half of the lineup, while Austin Meadows handles leadoff duties.

Tsutsugo is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

With a southpaw (Jordan Montgomery) on the mound for the opposition, the lefty-hitting Tsutsugo will take a seat after three consecutive starts. Yandy Diaz replaces Tsutsugo in the series finale as the Rays' leadoff man.

Tsutsugo went 1-for-4 with an RBI in Wednesday's loss against the Red Sox.

Tsutsugo has endured a rough start to the season, and while he has recorded hits in back-to-back games, he has gone just 2-for-17 to begin his big-league career. He hit .318 (7-for-22) with two extra-base hits during spring training, but he hasn't been able to replicate those numbers during the first week of the regular season. It's still early, but he needs to bounce back quickly to avoid losing playing time.

Tsutsugo is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Red Sox, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

It's only been four games, but Tsutsugo is 1-for-13 with zero extra-base hits so far this season on the heels of a disappointing first year with Tampa Bay. Francisco Mejia will start at designated hitter and bat seventh with lefty Martin Perez on the hill for Boston.

Tsutsugo will sit Saturday against Miami.

Tsutsugo started the first two games of the season at first base, going 0-for-6 with two walks and two strikeouts. Yandy Diaz shifts to first base Saturday, with Joey Wendle starting at third.

Tsutsugo hit .318 (7-for-22) with a double, a solo home run, two walks and four runs over his nine Grapefruit League games, and he'll be counted on to fill in frequently at first base during Ji-Man Choi's (knee) absence, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Choi is slated for arthroscopic knee surgery Wednesday and will be out multiple weeks, so Tsutsugo -- who's already seen a sizeable share of reps at first base this spring -- is likely to be the primary option there against right-handed pitching. The Rays have been pleased with Tsutsugo's development defensively, and manager Kevin Cash noted that the Japanese slugger has been timing up high-velocity fastballs better than last season. "You try not to get too consumed with spring training results, but there are some guys that you do want to see the intent to be there, to work on some of whatever feedback or corrections that they are trying to accomplish from last year to this year," Cash said. "And it looks like Yoshi has done that. He seems very comfortable."

Tsutsugo is hitting just .063 (1-for-16) across nine Grapefruit League games, but he's received praise from manager Kevin Cash for his ability to adapt to playing first base, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Japanese slugger's defensive versatility is especially relevant in light of the fact he's contributing next to nothing at the plate thus far after a difficult first season stateside in 2020, and due to the fact Ji-Man Choi is currently sidelined with knee inflammation. Choi's uncertain status for Opening Day figures to help keep Tsutsugo's playing time secure for the time being, irrespective of the ongoing struggles at the plate.

Tsutsugo is slated to see some time at first base this coming season in addition to third base, left field and designated hitter, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Tsutsugo played first in the early days of his professional career in Japan, but he focused on the hot corner, left field and DH during his first season stateside in 2020. The 29-year-old stood out with a diving stop at first during Wednesday's game against the Twins, and the defensive versatility is about the only thing he has going for him thus far in spring training -- through six Grapefruit League games, Tsutsugo is hitting .091 (1-for-11) with an RBI, three walks and five strikeouts after slashing just .197/.314/.395 in 51 games last season.

Tsutsugo is 0-for-7 with two walks and an RBI across his first four Grapefruit League games.

The second-year Japanese import has played left field, designated hitter, first base and third base, as the Rays are making good on their stated intentions of testing the limits of Tsutsugo's defensive versatility. While his ability to slot into different spots on the field will certainly be a plus, Tsutsugo's meal ticket is ultimately his bat, which has yet to prove capable of consistently solving big-league arms.

Tsutsugo, who struggled during his first season stateside in 2020 after a successful career in Japan, is a player who's likely to be scrutinized heavily in spring training, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

After inking a two-year, $12 million contract that also set back the Rays an additional $2.4 million in the form of a posting fee, the Japanese import limped to a .197/.314/.395 line across 184 plate appearances (51 games) during the abbreviated 2020 campaign. Tsutsugo particularly struggled with adjusting to the velocity of MLB arms, seeing his strikeout rate bump up to 27.0 percent after he'd checked in with sub-20.0 percent figures in two of his last three seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball overseas. Tsutsugo did generate an impressive 14.1 percent walk rate and nearly half (14) of his 31 hits went for extra bases, so it wasn't necessarily a year altogether devoid of positives. Nevertheless, Tsutsugo now finds himself entering a contract year, and if he isn't able to muster appreciably better results over the course of what is expected to be a full 162-game season, it appears likely his time with the Rays will conclude after the coming campaign.

Tsutsugo is out of the lineup Monday for Game 1 of the Rays' American League Divisional Series with the Yankees, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Even with a right-hander (Gerrit Cole) on the bump for the Yankees, the lefty-swinging Tsutsugo will be relegated to a bench role while Yandy Diaz assumes designated hitter duties. Diaz could end up seeing the majority of his starts at first base or third base during the series, but Tsutsugo may no longer find himself in the large side of a platoon at DH if Austin Meadows (oblique) is deemed ready to rejoin the lineup at any point.

Tsutsugo 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.

Tsutsugo served as the Rays' designated hitter and leadoff man in the team's 3-1 win in Game 1, going 0-for-2 with a strikeout. With a southpaw (Hyun-Jin Ryu) on the mound for Toronto, the lefty-swinging Tsutsugo will cede DH duties to Randy Arozarena in Game 2, while Mike Brosseau checks in as Tampa Bay's table setter.

Tsutsugo went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional run in a 3-1 win over the Orioles on Saturday.

Tsutsugo got the Rays on the board in the third inning, launching a solo homer to right field. The long ball was his eighth of the season -- tied for second-most on the team. The 28-year-old has been mostly as advertised in his first major-league season, providing a fair amount of power but hitting only .203.

Tsutsugo, who went 2-for-5 with a triple and a run while hitting out of the leadoff spot in Friday's win over the Orioles, is due for more work out of the top of the order in the wake of Austin Meadows' (oblique) placement on the injured list, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The Japanese slugger has struggled to a .200 average and .314 on-base percentage this season, but perhaps a switch to the top of the order will help garner some momentum for him in the last few games of the season. Tsutsugo's solid effort Friday marked his first multi-hit outing since last Friday against the Red Sox and brought his average back to the Mendoza Line for the first time since that contest as well.

Tsutsugo is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Nationals.

He has started six of the last 10 games and will head to the bench even with righty Austin Voth on the hill for Washington. Tsutsugo is one of a handful of Rays hitters who seemingly play 50 to 75 percent of the time. Austin Meadows will start at designated hitter while Randy Arozarena, Kevin Kiermaier and Manuel Margot start in the outfield from left to right.

Tsutsugo will be on the bench Saturday against Boston, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The majority of Tsutsugo's off days this season have come against lefties, but he'll sit against right-hander Nathan Eovaldi in this one despite slugging his seventh home run as part of a 2-for-5 night Friday. Joey Wendle will start at third base, Tsutsugo's most common recent position.

Tsutsugo is not in Thursday's lineup against the Red Sox.

He is hitting .231/.412/.538 with two home runs and more walks (eight) than strikeouts (six) over his last 10 games. Randy Arozarena will get the start at designated hitter while hitting second with lefty Mike Kickham on the mound for Boston.