NEW YORK — As they wait for Yandy Diaz to return from what is now being called a personal family matter, the Rays decided they weren’t going to play shorthanded as they did Friday.
Saturday, they recalled infielder Curtis Mead from Triple-A Durham to take Diaz’s place, and he had a hand in the 9-1 win over the Yankees, going 3-for-5 with the first RBI.
To open a spot on the 26-man active roster, they placed Diaz on the restricted list, which means they won’t pay him from his $8 million salary for each day he is gone, roughly $43,011 daily.
That move would indicate that Diaz’s situation, which the team has declined to provide details of, did not qualify for him to instead be placed on the bereavement/family medical emergency list, on which he would have still gotten paid.
That list is designed for players, with approval, who are “unable to render services because of the serious or severe illness or death of a member of such player’s immediate family (such as a spouse, parent, grandparent, sibling, child or grandchild) or a member of such player’s spouse’s immediate family.”
The Rays indicated Diaz has not told the team when he would return. He missed three games in July 2023 following the birth of his son, Yandy Jared.
“We’re taking it day to day,” manager Kevin Cash said. “Personal reasons. Just hoping that we see him soon.”
Mead made the Rays’ opening day roster, but hit only .218 over 26 games and was sent to Durham on May 6. He got off to a slow start with the Bulls, but over his last 23 games has hit .295 with six homers, 19 RBIs and an .889 OPS.
Mead, who got to New York around 3 a.m. after travel delays from Jacksonville where the Bulls were playing, said he welcomed the opportunity, however short it may be.
“I’m excited,” he said. “I think that the time in Triple A, although I didn’t necessarily want it, it was good. I enjoy playing every day and I feel like I’m more prepared to play this time around. ... I think any opportunity is a good one to get in front of the coaching staff again and get around the guys.’'
Baz ready to roll
Shane Baz is ready for Sunday’s game, and the chance to make his third start since being called up from Triple A following a lengthy rehab from September 2022 Tommy John elbow surgery, and a spring 2024 oblique strain.
Though Baz has an 0-1, 5.23 record, he feels good about what he has done.
“I’ve liked my approach, just attacking hitters,” Baz said. “I’m not going to put anybody on for free. So I’m going to make them swing. And I’ve liked that a lot. I think I can be a little better with my locations. And just a little more fine-tuned with my stuff. I can get a little better. A lot better, obviously. But yeah, I’m happy with it.”
Baz complimented pitching coach Kyle Snyder for helping him “make little tweaks here and there” and said he is getting more into a standard groove.
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Explore all your options“That’s kind of, I think, the best spot,” Baz said. “Obviously, you might have a little extra adrenaline the first couple (starts). But once you kind of sink into that groove, and just try and be consistent, I think that’s when, like, the good outings start coming. So I’m trying to just get in my routine and kind of take it one day at a time. And yeah, I definitely think I’m getting more comfortable.”
Miscellany
The Rays improved to 17-8 vs. lefty starters. ... The Yankees were shut out for the seventh time, though only the second since the end of April. ... Jeffrey Springs was on the mound for Durham’s doubleheader opener Saturday afternoon in Jacksonville for his eighth rehab start as he nears the end of his recovery from April 2023 Tommy John surgery. The decision to bring Springs back will be made on “a start-by-start” basis, Cash said. ... Drew Rasmussen, who had an internal brace procedure on his right elbow in July 2023, will make his first rehab appearance on Sunday for Durham. ... Of some historical significance, the Rays, per StatsPerform, on Saturday became the second team, in regular-season and postseason play, to score nine or more runs, hit four or more homers, allow one or zero runs, walk five or more times, steal two or more bases and get their opponent to ground into three or more double plays. The other? The Dodgers, against the Braves, on Aug. 23, 1958.
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