Day 3 — Rays Spring Training — News and Notes
Updated 1:30 p.m. It was a much better day weather-wise in Port Charlotte on Thursday as more than a dozen Rays pitchers got off the mound including starters Charlie Morton and Blake Snell.
Manager Kevin Cash was quite impressed with both Rays starters, but said the pitcher who stood out was Emilio Pagan. Cash says Pagan had a very crisp breaking ball. Pagan, acquired in the off-season from Oakland, was pleased to have made a positive impression:
Pagan, who has historically been very good against righties but not as successful against lefties, has been working on a 12–6 curve ball, as well as an occasional change-up. Pagan says he’ll be working a great deal on the curve this Spring.
In addition to discussing Pagan, Cash also spoke about the team’s top starters, and praised the work of Wilmer Font in a post-workout media session.
After his first bullpen in Port Charlotte, Snell, the reigning Cy Young Award winner, was pleased, and also praised new catcher Mike Zunino a great deal. Zunino caught Snell and Morton on Thursday morning.
Those who threw bullpens also included Hunter Wood, Jalen Beeks, Andrew Kittredge, and Adam Kolarek.
Kittredge had a three-game MLB suspension lifted from hitting New York’s Austin Romine after an appeal. Kittredge says it became official in December, and it certainly was a weight lifted off his shoulders. Kittredge still had to pay a fine. Since he was off the roster, it would have been hard for the Rays to add Kittredge back on since he would have left his team short-handed. Adding a player to the 40-man likely would have been for an immediate need.
Kittredge said he spent a month in the off-season working with Driveline, and continues to work with a weighted ball. Kittredge is anxious to see how it impacts his stuff this spring.
Meanwhile, reliever Chaz Roe says his back feels better after tweaking it feels better. Assuming he continues on pace he is expected to throw on Saturday.
Pitcher/catcher workouts continue on Friday. Daniel Robertson did arrive in camp on Thursday, meaning 59 of 66 players already have reported.
