Tampa Bay Rays activate LHP Blake Snell and 1B Ji-Man Choi

Prior to their series finale against the Kansas City Royals, the Tampa Bay Rays have activated left-handed pitcher Blake Snell from the 10-day Injured List, and first baseman Ji-Man Choi from the Restricted List.

In the corresponding roster moves, the Rays have optioned infielder Andrew Velazquez and right-handed pitcher Austin Pruitt, to Triple-A Durham. In an unrelated move, Hunter Wood’s paternity leave has been moved to the ‘family medical emergency list.’ Kevin Cash indicates that Wood’s baby is healthy, but was born prematurely.

Snell returns to the active roster after a 10 day stint on the Injured List with a fracture toe, sustained after an incident in the bathroom. The reigning American League Cy Young had been dominant over his past couple of starts before the restroom mishap. After surrendering five runs on Opening Day, Snell had allowed just three runs over his last 19 innings pitched and had racked up 33 strikeouts over that time frame.

Choi returns to the Rays after a brief stay on the restricted list, for a thus far undisclosed reason. The 27 year old is hitting .286/.387/.444 with 1 HR over 75 plate appearances thus far in 2019 all the while honing his skills at first base.