The Rays are bringing Griffin Jax back into the rotation, and they need him right away.
Tampa Bay reinstated the right-hander from the 15-day injured list and sent Alex Cook to Triple-A Durham to clear a spot on the newly expanded 28-man roster. Jax is set to start Sept. 2 against the New York Mets.
Jax had been sidelined with elbow discomfort after getting scratched from a start against the Seattle Mariners on Aug. 8.
Any time that kind of issue sends a pitcher to the injured list, it sets off alarms. In this case, though, he avoided anything serious and turned in a strong solo rehab outing.
Still, the timing makes this a tricky return. He made only one rehab appearance and has had more than a week between outings, so the Rays probably won’t push him deep into the game against the Mets. Manager Kevin Cash had wanted to get him to around 60-65 pitches in a second rehab start, but instead Jax is jumping straight back into a major league assignment.
That likely means the bullpen will have to cover plenty of innings unless Jax is especially efficient. Freddy Peralta offered the blueprint on Sept. 1, needing 20 pitches to escape the first inning against his former team before settling in and finishing six innings on just 74 pitches.
Jax’s last big league outing came Aug. 2 against the Chicago White Sox in a 9-1 Rays loss. He worked five innings and allowed three runs, one earned, on four hits. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out eight.
The move also underscores how quickly Tampa Bay is reshuffling its pitching plans. Jax was expected to work as a high-leverage reliever entering the 2026 season, but after a rough start, the club began stretching him out as a starter. That change has paid off, with Jax settling into the role and performing at a much higher level.
With Peralta now in the mix and the rotation healthy across the board, Cash has some decisions to make. Tampa Bay could lean into a six-man rotation to protect pitchers on innings limits, or it could move one starter into the bullpen. The next few days, and how Cash uses his bullpen in games, should make the answer clear.
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Rays Deadline Gamble On Freddy Peralta Looks Bigger After Latest Start
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The latest reminder came against his old club, when he looked every bit like the pitcher Tampa Bay thought it was getting. Peralta retired 17 of the final 18 hitters he faced in that outing, another sign that the Rays bid to bolster the back end of their rotation for the postseason may be paying off, even if the full verdict on the trade will not come until the pressure rises later. [Read more 🡒]