Fansided

Opening Day 2015: Rays are already placing everyone on the DL

By Stanford Crissey

Mar 23, 2015; Port Charlotte, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey (48), pitcher Alex Cobb (53), pitcher Jake Odorizzi (23) and pitcher Matt Moore (55) watch from the dugout against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Charlotte Sports Park. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2015; Port Charlotte, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey (48), pitcher Alex Cobb (53), pitcher Jake Odorizzi (23) and pitcher Matt Moore (55) watch from the dugout against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Charlotte Sports Park. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Tampa Bay Rays place five pitchers on disabled list ahead of Opening Day

The Tampa Bay Rays are starting the season on a down note, placing five pitchers, including four starters, on the disabled list as the season begins today for the team.

The team announced the moves Monday ahead of their Opening Day game against the Baltimore Orioles.

More from MLB

Four-fifths of the team’s ideal rotation will start the season on the DL, with Alex Cobb (right forearm tendinitis), left-hander Drew Smyly (left shoulder tendinitis) and right-hander Alex Colome (pneumonia) having been placed on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to March 27.

Fellow starter Matt Moore was also placed on the 60-day DL as he is still recovering from Tommy John surgery he underwent last April to repair a torn UCL in his elbow.

Closer Jake McGee (elbow surgery) and second baseman Nick Franklin (left oblique strain) have also been placed on the 15-day DL.

Overall, it’s not a great start to the season health-wise for the Rays, as all of these layers are key contributors, and the team will look pretty barren in April without them. Cobb may be their best starter, and Smyly was a key piece of the David Price trade, and both are key to the success of the rotation this season. Colome is an intriguing prospect who could have won a spot in the rotation were he not injured.

Moore will miss more time than the others after having Tommy John surgery last year, and is expected back in the summer. When he does come back, he could be the one to claim the ace role for the team, as the former top prospect has shown flashes in his career but has never quite taken the leap into ace-hood (ace-dom? ace-ography? Whatever).

Franklin and McGee are expected to be the starting second baseman and the closer, respectively, once they return from their injuries.

Without all these starters, the Rays’ initial rotation will consist of Chris Archer, Jake Odorizzi, Nate Karns, Matt Andriese and Mike Montgomery. While the team is lucky to have such depth, their path back to the playoffs is much more viable with Smyly, Cobb, and Moore.

So while the team isn’t quite Texas Rangers-level snakebitten, as all but Moore are expected back within the month, it is a little disconcerting for the team to start the season like this. But it’s only April, and there’s a good chance all these players will come back wuickly and put this injury bug in the rearview mirror.

Next: A-Rod batting 7th in return to Yankees line-up after steroid suspension

More from FanSided

Home/MLB