Pepiot (1-3) was tagged with a loss after he pitched six innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out seven batters in Sunday's 4-0 defeat to the Yankees.
Pepiot bounced back well after surrendering six runs over six innings in his last start Tuesday against the Red Sox. One of the right-hander's biggest problems this season has been the long ball, and he surrendered two more Sunday. Trent Grisham launched a solo shot in the first inning before Cody Bellinger went deep with a solo homer of his own in the top of the sixth. Pepiot has now given up eight home runs over his first five starts of the season. He'll carry a 4.82 ERA and 1.50 WHIP into his next projected start Saturday in San Diego.
Lowe (oblique) took about 20 dry swings Saturday, Ryan Bass of FanDuel Sports Network Sun reports.
Lowe said after the swinging session that his oblique feels good and added that he is hoping to start hitting off a tee next week. That still probably puts him at least two weeks from playing in games, but the veteran outfielder said that he is "pleased with his progress." Lowe will likely need a minor-league rehab assignment before he's ready to rejoin the Rays.
Mangum went 1-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and a stolen base Saturday against the Yankees.
Mangum started his seventh consecutive game, and he's managed at least one hit in six of them. He offers very little power and hits toward the bottom third of the order, but he has eight steals without being caught and has also scored seven runs across 18 games.
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Rays' Jose Caballero: Scores three times in win
Rotowire
Caballero went 2-for-3 with a walk and three runs scored Saturday against the Yankees.
Caballero has gotten the majority of his playing time on the small side of a platoon in right field. However, he was in the lineup at shortstop against a righty Saturday and delivered an impactful performance. Even with part-time playing time, Caballero has five extra-base hits and five stolen bases across 44 plate appearances.
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Rays' Brandon Lowe: Knocks in two
Rotowire
Lowe went 1-for-5 with two RBI on Saturday against the Yankees.
Lowe has struggled for the last two weeks, recording only eight hits across 45 at-bats with no multi-hit performances. He has still managed to record seven RBI in that span and is striking out at only 21.3 percent of the time, suggesting his results should improve.
Rortvedt went 1-for-3 with two RBI, a walk and a run scored Saturday against the Yankees.
Rortvedt drew his third start in five games, all of which have come at catcher and at the expense of Danny Jansen, who has just a .486 OPS through 53 plate appearances. Rortvedt is typically not much of a contributor at the plate himself however, and he now has two hits across 21 at-bats to begin 2025.
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Rays' Yandy Diaz: Three hits in win
Rotowire
Diaz went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI on Saturday against the Yankees.
Diaz failed to record multiple hits across his first 10 starts of the campaign, but he continues to turn things around at the plate, as Saturday marked his fifth multi-hit effort in his last 11 starts. In that 11-game sample, Diaz has also managed three homers and five total extra-base hits to go along with seven RBI and seven runs scored.
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Rays' Jonathan Aranda: Walks off Yankees
Rotowire
Aranda went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run Saturday against the Yankees.
Aranda capped off a comeback for the Rays with a walk-off home run in the 10th inning. He has hit well overall to begin the season and flashed a lot of power, tallying eight doubles and four home runs across 69 plate appearances, although most of that damage has come in the Rays' very hitter-friendly temporary home at George Steinbrenner Field. Aranda will likely remain in a strong-side platoon, but he did draw the start Friday with a lefty on the mound.
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Rays' Shane Baz: Labors in no-decision
Rotowire
Baz did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 10-8 extra-inning win against the Yankees, allowing five runs on four hits and four walks with three strikeouts over 3.1 innings.
Baz entered with three straight quality starts but couldn't escape the fourth inning Saturday in his shortest outing of the season. He struggled with command, generating just eight whiffs on 83 pitches while issuing four walks for the second time in four starts. The 25-year-old will carry a 3.22 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 30:8 K:BB across 22.1 innings into a road matchup with the Mariners next weekend.
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Rays' Chandler Simpson: Sparks rally in debut
Rotowire
Simpson went 1-for-5 with an RBI double and a run scored in Saturday's 10-8 extra-inning win over the Yankees.
Simpson drove in a run with a ground-rule double off Devin Williams, igniting a four-run rally in the ninth to force extra innings. He batted leadoff and should get a fair shot at regular playing time moving forward. While the 24-year-old had just one extra-base hit through 78 plate appearances at Triple-A Durham this season, he swiped eight bases and boasts true 80-grade speed.
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Rays' Richie Palacios: Facing extended absence
Rotowire
Manager Kevin Cash said Saturday that the Rays expect Palacios (knee) to miss roughly 4-to-6 weeks, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
A right knee sprain sent Palacios to the 10-day injured list Friday. The Rays are still gathering opinions on how to approach the 27-year-old's recovery, but he seems to be in for a long stay on the IL, whether he undergoes surgery or not.
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Rays' Christopher Morel: Taking seat Saturday
Rotowire
Morel isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
After going 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in Friday's series opener, Morel will take a seat while Kameron Misner, Chandler Simpson and Jake Mangum start across Tampa Bay's outfield Saturday.
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Rays' Taylor Walls: Sitting Saturday
Rotowire
Walls is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Walls owns a .459 OPS across 30 plate appearances over his last eight games and will now take a day to collect himself. Jose Caballero will fill the resulting void at shortstop and bat eighth.
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Rays' Danny Jansen: Idle Saturday
Rotowire
Jansen isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Jansen will get a day off Saturday after going 2-for-15 with eight strikeouts across his last six games. Ben Rortvedt will draw the start behind the plate and bat ninth.
Rays' Drew Rasmussen: Takes loss despite strong outing
Rotowire
Rasmussen (1-1) took the loss against the Yankees on Friday, allowing one run on three hits and three walks while striking out seven across 5.2 innings.
Rasmussen put together another strong performance Friday, tossing 84 pitches (58 strikes) while generating 17 whiffs and fanning seven batters for a second straight game. The RBI single that he gave up to Trent Grisham in the second inning was Rasmussen's only blemish, but he still came away with the loss due to the lack of run support from the Tampa Bay offense. Rasmussen has allowed only two runs across his four outings and sports a 0.82 WHIP and 22:5 K:BB in 20.2 innings. He's in line to face the Diamondbacks on the road next week.
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