The Tampa Bay Rays made a roster move on Tuesday. Rookie reliever Austin Pruitt was optioned to Triple-A Durham.
Several hours before first pitch, the Rays announced that Austin Pruitt had been optioned to Durham and Diego Moreno was on his way to Tropicana Field. Moreno is expected to arrive at some point during tonight game against the Royals.
The demotion of Pruitt probably has some people wondering why?
While other people may be wondering what took so long?
Pruitt got off to a dreadful start to his MLB career, but the 27-year-old turned things around quickly. So far this season Pruitt leads the team in wins (3) but has also surrendered earned runs in half of his 12 appearances. Before the game, manager Kevin Cash said his role in Durham would be “very similar” to what it was with the big-league club.
Five-of-his-last-six appearances were multiple innings, and, not including his start on April 25, had been called upon as early as the sixth inning and as late as the ninth inning. Cash went on to describe his role as “longer-relief, pitching in important innings but giving him those two/three inning outings.”
Moreno Gets Another Shot
Diego Moreno was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a 19-year-old in 2007. He has spent all but a few weeks in the minor leagues. The Venezuela native made his major league debut in 2015 as a member of the New York Yankees. He appeared in four games that year before being sent back to the minors.
Diego Moreno had 10.1 IP in 2015 as a member of #Yankees. Spent 2016 in NY minor system (8-6; 6.03) 78K over 71.2 IP #Rays
— The Scrum Sports (@TheScrumSports) May 9, 2017
Pregame Notes:
- Steven Souza Jr is out of the lineup (thumb) today after exiting last night’s game. He said there is no timetable on his return but could return tomorrow if he feels better.
- When asked about the team’s increase in strikeouts, Cash wouldn’t name names but said that “core players” needed to step up.
Tonight’s Lineups: #Rays #Royals pic.twitter.com/ina9Ni5tIa
— The Scrum Sports (@TheScrumSports) May 9, 2017
