ST. PETERSBURG — The Tampa Bay Rays placed outfielder Victor Mesa Jr. on the injured list with a strained left hamstring and recalled catcher Kenny Piper from Triple-A Durham, opting to carry three catchers rather than add another left-handed-hitting outfielder to replace the rookie.
Mesa exited the series opener against the Blue Jays in the fourth inning due to tightness in his left hamstring, which had been bothering him since he left Friday’s game with the same issue. Manager Kevin Cash said the hamstring was “cranky, acting up on him. Can’t quite get over the hump where he wants.” The Rays are optimistic Mesa will return by the end of the month.
The 56-game sample Mesa compiled since stepping in for injured right fielder Jake Fraley has been significant — 10 homers and a .735 OPS while flashing range and a strong arm in right field and occasional center field work. “I think our hope is it’s a minimum stint. He’s a big part of our team,” Cash said. “He’s done a lot of good things with some limited opportunities to start, and then he made the most of it and kind of came in and contributed quite a bit.”
In additional roster moves, the Rays optioned right-hander Jesse Scholtens — who pitched four innings of two-run ball to help a beleaguered Tampa bullpen — to Triple-A and recalled right-hander Chris Roycroft to fill out the pitching staff. Right-handed hitters Ryan Vilade and Jonny DeLuca will get more work in right field alongside Chandler Simpson in left and Cedric Mullins in center during Mesa’s absence. Fraley is expected to begin a Minor League rehab assignment with Triple-A Durham, and No. 8 prospect Jacob Melton, dealing with a right hamstring strain, is nearing a return to Triple-A game action.
The Rays have left-handed-hitting outfield options at Triple-A in Jack Suwinski and Jake Cave, but neither is on the 40-man roster. Instead, Piper joins Liam Hicks and Nick Fortes behind the plate. Cash said having a third catcher will allow the club to “balance his workload” with Hicks, who had not been catching regularly with the Marlins before the Rays acquired him at the Trade Deadline, and be more aggressive using Hicks and Fortes as pinch-hitters.
Piper, who was with Durham for a series against Triple-A Gwinnett, caught a flight from Atlanta to join the club at Tropicana Field. This is his second stint with Tampa Bay after he came up from Double-A Montgomery to make his unexpected MLB debut on Aug. 3. “It’s exciting. I think the debut is going to be about as nerve-wracking as it gets, and you just keep getting more comfortable,” Piper said. “That’s what I’ve heard, at least.”
The whirlwind has included his wife and 1 1/2-year-old daughter traveling with him from Double-A to the Majors, back to Triple-A with a 40-man roster spot, and now back to the big leagues. “It’s been pretty chaotic. It’s been a blast. My wife and baby have been with me the whole time, which is amazing,” Piper said. “We feel the pains of travel, for sure, so it’s felt crazy. But I know that we’re going to look back on this fondly and like it’s one of the most exciting times of our lives.”
Piper has never played a game at Tropicana Field, though he has taken part in offseason workouts inside the Rays’ home ballpark. Tampa Bay continues its series against the Blue Jays at the Trop, with Fraley’s rehab timeline and Mesa’s return expected to reshape the outfield picture before September roster expansion.