Rays Place Pearce, Mahtook on the DL: Fantasy Fallout
By Bill Pivetz
The Tampa Bay Rays just announced two more players will be placed on the disabled list, Steve Pearce and Mikie Mahtook. This will have residual effects.
This 2016 season for the Tampa Bay Rays can be summed up by one word – disappointing. The team is 8.5 games back of the first place Baltimore Orioles. The Rays starting pitching is struggling, but the bullpen is doing well. The big impact is from the amount of players on the disabled list. The Rays announced that two more names have been added, Steve Pearce and Mikie Mahtook.
Will Tampa Bay be able to field a team by the end of the season?
Pearce finds himself on the DL with a hamstring injury. He left Monday’s game in the ninth inning and was quickly ruled out for Tuesday’s game. The DL announcement came Tuesday afternoon that he will need at least two weeks to recover. There is no timetable for his return.
More from Fantasy Baseball
- 5 fantasy baseball waiver wire pivots to replace Triston McKenzie
- Fantasy baseball mock draft 2023, 12-team: Aaron Judge over Trea Turner?
- 3 fantasy baseball sleepers being drafted too late
- NBA DFS picks December 25: Merry Bucking Christmas
- Fantasy Baseball: Hot pitchers worthy of starting this weekend
He is hitting .322 with nine home runs, 25 RBI and a 32:20 K:BB ratio. He was getting a big boost in ownership from fantasy owners, up 10.5 percent over the last week. In that span, he had a .300 on-base percentage.
Most of Pearce’s value came from his position eligibility. With the other injuries on the Rays roster, Pearce was being used all over the field. He is eligible at first base, second base, outfield and DH. He also had two games at third base. His loss is going to be a big one for Tampa Bay and fantasy owners in deeper leagues.
Mahtook was getting more playing time as of late because of the injuries to Kevin Kiermaier, Steven Souza and Brandon Guyer. He was hitting .205/.250/.250 with nine hits (two doubles) and three RBI in June. He wasn’t posted fantasy-relevant numbers, but his absence will give way to yet another outfielder to keep an eye on.
The former first-round pick fractured his hand after a hit by pitch in the second inning of Monday’s game. The Tampa Bay Rays received a bit of good news as the X-ray showed a non-displaced fracture, meaning no surgery is required. He will still miss most of the summer with an early August return date.
Next: Dexter Fowler Hits the DL
The Tampa Bay Rays are losing players left and right. Let’s hope that this is the last of it. The team, and fantasy owners, can’t afford to lose Corey Dickerson or Evan Longoria. Like I said earlier, Mahtook’s loss isn’t as big of a deal as Pearce’s is, but still worth mentioning. There are rumors that the team is thinking about bringing back Carl Crawford, which could help both parties.
There is very little fantasy value in this Rays’ roster, so your outfield fill ins need to come from somewhere else.