The Rays have placed 29-year old righty swinging outfielder Justin Ruggiano on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to August 7th with left knee bursitis. Ruggiano has played in 38 games for the Rays so far this year and he is 24 for 94 (.255 avg, .708 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 4 homers, 13 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Rays have brought 25-year old shortstop Reid Brignac to replace Ruggiano on the active roster. Brignac has played in 68 games for the Rays already this year and he was 36 for 187 (.193 avg, .453 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 1 homer, 10 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Brignac played in 11 games in AAA-ball after his demotion and he was 9 for 39 (.231 avg, .758 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. He should get some P.T. at SS again as neither Sean Rodriguez or Elliot Johnson have stepped up while he was in the minors.

The Rays have placed 23-year old righty starting pitcher Alex Cobb on the 15-day disabled list due to right hand discomfort. Cobb has started 9 games for the Rays this year and he is 3-2 with a 3.42 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. The Rays will go back to a five man rotation with Cobb on the shelf. They have recalled 27-year old lefty reliever Cesar Ramos from AAA. Ramos has pitched in 46 games (0 starts) for the Rays already this year and he is 0-1 with a 4.22 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. The Rays aren’t going to activate Cobb until he’s 100% healthy.

UPDATE: (8/10/2011) - The pain shooting to Alex Cobb’s hand was the result of a rib cage injury. He will have season ending surgery on his ribcage but he should be ready for spring training in 2012.

The Tampa Bay Rays have placed 26-year old switch-hitting catcher Jose Lobaton on the 15-day disabled list due to a ligament sprain in his left knee. Lobaton has played in 3 games for the Rays this year and he was 0 for 4 (.000 avg) with 1 whiff. 27-year old righty swinging rookie Robinson Chirinos has replaced Lobaton on the active roster. Chirinos came over to the Rays in the Matt Garza deal over the winter. He has played in 2 games for the Rays already and he is 2 for 6 (.333 avg, 1.000 OPS) with 2 runs scored and a double. Chirinos was the Cubs’ #16 prospect according to Baseball America.

The Tampa Bay Rays have placed 32-year old righty reliever Juan Cruz on the 15-day disabled list due to a right groin strain. Cruz has pitched in 38 games (0 starts) for the Rays so far this year and he is 4-0 with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. He has only given up 21 hits while whiffing 32 batters in his first 34 innings this year which proves his stuff is still more than good enough to succeed in the majors, but, he has also walked 21 batters and that’s way too many. The Rays hope that Cruz gets healthy soon because he has been a nice asset for the Rays’ bullpen this year.

The Tampa Bay Rays have placed 27-year old lefty swinging catcher John Jaso on the 15-day disabled list due to a oblique strain. Jaso has played in 65 games for the Rays so far this year and he is 40 for 180 (.222 avg, .639 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 3 homers, 17 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Rays have called up 26-year old switch-hitting Jose Lobaton to replace Jaso on the active roster. Lobaton has played in 54 games in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 54 for 184 (.293 avg, .899 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 8 homers and 31 RBIs. All of Lobaton’s playing experience in the majors came back in 2009 with the Padres. He played in 7 games in 2009 for the Padres and he was 3 for 17 (.176 avg, .353 OPS). I look for Lobaton to platoon with Kelly Shoppach behind the plate until Jaso is ready to return to action.