38-year old switch hitting catcher Gregg Zaun has been hot with the bat since coming over from the Orioles in a earlier this month. He has played in 15 games for the Rays and he is 15 for 49 (.306 avg, .823 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 2 homers and 8 RBIs. Dioner Navarro has failed to respond to the challenge that Zaun is giving him which could result in him spending a lot of time on the pine.

The Rays have traded Scott Kazmir to the Angels for 21-year old lefty starting pitcher Alexander Torres, 21-year old lefty swinging 1B/3B Matthew Sweeney and a player to be named later. Kazmir was not pitching well until lately which is likely what ramped up the Angels’ interest in him. In his last three starts for the Rays, Kazmir was 2-0 with a 3.20 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. His velocity had appeared to have returned as he whiffed 21 batters in 19 2/3 innings in those starts. But, Kazmir has not pitched well this season and the Rays didn’t send any money with him saving the team around $24 million bucks over the next three seasons. Kazmir pitched in 20 games (all starts) for the Rays this season and he was 8-7 with a 5.92 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP. Kazmir pitched in 145 games (144 starts) in his career with the Rays and he was 55-44 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. He leaves the Rays as their all time leader in starts, wins and strikeouts and he’s only 25 years old which is a tad scary to the Rays.

Alexander Torres is a nice prospect as he was ranked as the Angels’ #24 player in their minor league system heading into this season according to Baseball America. Torres pitched in 26 games (24 starts) in the minors this season and he was 13-4 with a 2.75 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He only has allowed 116 hits in 147 1/3 innings this season while whiffing 149 batters which shows what kind of stuff he has. But he needs to work on his control before he gets to Tampa as he has walked 80 batters this season. Matthew Sweeney was the #18 ranked prospect in the Angels’ system heading into this season according to Baseball America. He has played in 62 games in the minors this season and he was 67 for 226 (.296 avg, .884 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 9 homers and 44 RBIs. The player to be named later is also thought to be a decent prospect so this could turn out being a nice haul for the Rays. Still, they will need either top prospect Wade Davis or Andy Sonnanstine to step up in September (replacing Kazmir in the rotation) if they want to make a legit playoff push.

The Rays have traded 25-year old lefty swinging 1B Rhyne Hughes to the Orioles to complete the Gregg Zaun trade. Hughes has played in 114 games in AA+AAA ball this season and he was 124 for 440 (.282 avg, .866 OPS) with 62 runs scored, 22 homers, 72 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Although Hughes has solid minor league numbers this was still a trade the Rays had to make as Zaun will help them right now.

The Rays have claimed 40-year old righty reliever Russ Springer off waivers from the A’s. Springer pitched in 48 games (0 starts) for the Rays this season and he was 0-1 with a 4.10 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. He has now pitched in 712 games (27 starts) in his major league career and he is 35-42 with 8 saves, a 4.53 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. The Rays are on the hook for the $1 million bucks left on Springer’s contract but they didn’t have to give up any players to get him. This was a good move for the Rays.

The Rays have released righty reliever Jorge Julio. Julio pitched in 19 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Rays and he was 0-1 with a 5.96 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. Julio still has good stuff as evidenced by his 24 whiffs in 22 2/3 innings in AAA but he was all over the place walking 15 batters. This was the right move for both the Rays and Julio as he will now have the chance to hook up with another team.