Tampa Bay Rays news and links: A walkoff, a check swing, and a sellout

Yesterday, the Rays walked off in the 13th inning.

Great. The worrying part was that Evan Longoria left the game early with some discomfort in his forearm after a check swing. Matt Stein of Sports Talk Florida has video from the clubhouse of Longoria talking about it. Longo says it’s something he’s been dealing with that’s happened “every time [he] check swings.” Says he’s day-to-day.

Friday’s pride night, dedicated to and raising money for the Pulse victims, has sold out. Here’s Brian Auld’s statement.

And with Steven Souza on ice with a sore shoulder at the moment, the Rays designated Dana Eveland for assignment and called up Jaff Decker. There were things the Rays liked about Eveland, such as the spin rate on his breaking ball, which Kevin Cash praised, but it wasn’t translating into major league outs.

Other Links:

• The Rays have had success recently with moving a couple starters—Erasmo Ramirez and Matt Andriese—to the bullpen. David Laurila talked to Dillon Gee, who’s just done the move himself from a starter on the Mets to a reliver on the Royals. Laurila's a really good interview, and he got Gee to talk meaningfully about what that transition is like.
• Gerald Schifman broke down the ground ball.
• Baseball America looked at what happens when a pitcher with no experience above A+ is taken and then kept in the Rule 5 draft (as San Diego is doing with Luis Perdomo).