The Tampa Bay Rays will be without backup catcher Shawn Riggans for the remainder of the season due to knee surgery. He played in 44 games for the Rays this season and he was 30 for 135 (.222 avg, .694 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 6 homers and 24 RBIs. Newly acquired Michel Hernandez will now serve as Dioner Navarro’s top backup. He has played in 2 games for the Rays this season and he is 1 for 6 (.167 avg) with 1 run scored.

The Rays have promoted 23-year old lefty David Price from AAA and they will likely start him on September 23rd as they have a doubleheader that day against the Orioles. He started 19 games this season in three levels of the minors (A, AA, AAA) and he compiled a 12-1 record with a 2.30 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Price whiffed 109 batters in 109.2 innings in the minors showing what kind of stuff he has. The Rays will also likely use Price once in a while in relief against a tough lefty hitter. It was smart to bring him up for the stretch drive.

The Tampa Bay Rays have designated 1B/3B Joel Guzman for assignment. The Rays are pretty much giving up on the 23-year old Guzman as they like a lot of players better than him on the roster. Guzman played in 116 games in AAA ball this season and he was 108 for 436 (.248 avg, .714 OPS) with 52 runs scored, 20 homers and 72 RBIs. Guzman did play in 16 games for the Devil Rays last season and he was 9 for 37 (.243 avg, .660 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 4 RBIs. Some team will give Guzman another chance as he’s still a young guy.