The Rays' final roster is falling into place piece by piece. Today we heard news that Matt Joyce would be placed on the the DL to start the season and that Elliot Johnson had been placed on waivers. Neither move comes as a surprise, although we still don't know exactly how long to expect Joyce to be out. Joyce has been placed on the 15-day DL and backdated to March 26th, meaning he will be eligible to come back around April 10th.
Since Elliot Johnson has been on the Rays' 40-man roster for three seasons, he had to be placed on waivers before being assigned to Triple-A, meaning he can be claimed by any team at the moment. I have a soft spot in my heart for Helliot - that 2008 spring training will always stand out in my mind - and it will be sad to see him go if he gets claimed. In the end, though, it'd be for the best; the Rays have lots of current depth in the middle-infield positions and Johnson will continue to languish in Triple-A if he remains with the Rays. If he goes elsewhere, he might have more of a chance to serve as a major league back up.
Oh, and the Rays lost to the Orioles today. Bartlett had three hits and Ekstrom pitched well over three innings. The full box score can be found here.