Rays Links:

• Taylor Motter joined an illustrious group that includes Jake Elmore, Nick Franklin, Sam Fuld, Josh Wilson, and Wade Boggs as he took the mound in the ninth inning last night.
• Following his impressive pitching debut, Motter was optioned and Steven Souza Jr was activated from the disabled list
• Kevin Cash details his thought process on the bullpen during the meltdown on Thursday night
• Nick Franklin is feeling more comfortable this year and it’s led to success so far for him. Also, the Rays were able to retain Jaff Decker, who is now back in Durham.

Around the League:

• The Blue Jays and Indians engaged in an epic 19 inning affair that saw two position players grace the mound. The Indians would be victorious...for the 14th game in a row.
• The Madison Bumgarner for HR Derby campaign is dead as the MLBPA won’t allow a pitcher to take the place of a position player.
• The Red Sox have been heavily punished for their contractual shenangians that they pulled with five international free agents
• MLB Daily Dish previewed what each team may do at the upcoming trade deadline
• The field at Fort Bragg is ready to be played on
• Today kicks off the international signing period and Baseball America makes predictions on all 30 teams