Rays place Rasmussen on 60-day IL with flexor strain
The Tampa Bay Rays lost perhaps their most important starting pitcher for the foreseeable future, as they placed right-hander Drew Rasmussen on the 60-day injured list with a flexor strain.
The surprising announcement comes less than 24 hours after Rasmussen turned in a dominant start against the New York Yankees, allowing just two hits while striking out seven over seven shutout innings.
"Unfortunately, at the very tail end of (his start), (Drew) felt something that wasn't quite right," Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander told "The Ronnie and TKras Show" on Friday.
Rasmussen - who has twice undergone Tommy John surgery during his career - said Friday that he's hopeful surgery won't be required, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. He'll be shut down from throwing for eight weeks before starting to build up toward a possible return later in the summer, per Topkin.
Because he's on the 60-day IL, the earliest he could be activated would be at the All-Star break.
The 27-year-old was in the midst of a breakout season for the MLB-best Rays. In eight starts, he put up a career-low 2.62 ERA and 2.59 FIP, along with a 1.05 WHIP and 47 strikeouts.
Rasmussen is the second Rays starter to see a significant arm injury interrupt his dominant start to 2023, following left-hander Jeffrey Springs, who underwent season-ending elbow surgery last month.
The Rays are down to just two healthy traditional starting pitchers on their active roster: Shane McClanahan and Zach Eflin. Left-hander Josh Fleming is stretched out but will pitch in a bulk role behind opener Trevor Kelley on Friday.
One possible replacement for Rasmussen in the rotation could be rookie right-hander Taj Bradley who's in Triple-A but has made three starts for the Rays this year. Tyler Glasnow, who's still on a rehab assignment, can also slot into that spot when he returns.
Reliever Chris Muller was selected to the 40-man roster ahead of Friday's game in New York.