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The Rays have formally announced the injury suspected of Rays top southpaw Drew Smyly, landing him on the 60-Day Disabled List to free up a roster slot.
#Rays transfer LHP Drew Smyly (torn L labrum) to 60-day DL, claim RHP Preston Guilmet off waivers from Toronto. He reports to @DurhamBulls.
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 13, 2015
With that move, Smyly becomes the sixth Rays player on the 60-day DL, but has not yet elected surgery and is seeking a second opinion.
#Rays move Smyly to 60-day DL. He will see Dr. Meister in Texas, still deciding between surgery and rehab
— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) May 13, 2015
Regardless of his decision, a move to the 60-Day DL likely means we've seen the last of Drew Smyly this season.
Preston Guilmet is a man said to have "monster whiff/walk rates" in the Baseball Prospectus annual, described as a "viable 12th man" after a season of riding the bus up and down from the Orioles last year.
True to those descriptions, he struck out more than 27% of batters and walked around 5% in each of his last two minor league seasons. When he was promoted to the Orioles, he tallied 12 K's in 10 games. As a last man in the bullpen he was lost in a roster crunch and claimed by Toronto from the Pirates during the off-season, and it's in the Pirates section of the B-Pro annual that you'd find his name after he'd been acquired for cash. Baseball is a funny thing.
With the Blue Jays Tiple-A affiliate, Guilmet had 10 appearances and 12 K's as well, and now joins the Durham Bulls as a depth piece likely to play a role this season, if the Rays can hang onto him. He owns a fastball, a splitter, and a sinker with a reputation for being a quality Triple-A closer, but here's what Bucs Dugout had to say about him on his way out the door:
Guilmet is a very good Triple-A closer who's never gotten much of a chance at the big-league level because his fastball can't break a paper bag. His stats actually suggest he might be useful in the majors, but no one who employs him ever seems to think so.
Guilmet is—if anything—expendable, but our friends over at Bluebird Banter were far more upset to see him go. I don't know if he'll crack the major league roster, but I can see how it's worth the claim.