Curtis

Mead

Mead is booted from the active roster to make room for Junior Caminero with Caminero getting call Tuesday to join the Rays. Mead has performed admirably as of late, and there’s a good chance he’s back at some point this summer. There’s still some long-term upside in his bat even without elite power or speed.

This is now the third straight start for Mead and his fifth start in the last six games. Perhaps more importantly, all of them have come against right-handed pitching after he was limited to a weak-side platoon role after being recalled. The 23-year-old has been solid since the All-Star break, hitting .281 with thee runs scored, two RBI, and just five strikeouts in 11 games. The Rays likely want to see what, if any, role he can play for the team in 2025, but his lack of power and speed so far would seem to suggest he’s a better real-life player than fantasy player.

27-year-old reliever Michael Flynn is the reported return. Ryan Yarbrough will be DFA’d, according to MLB.com’s Juan Toribio. The Dodgers showed no interest in re-signing Rosario in the offseason, when they were planning on Mookie Betts at second and Gavin Lux at short, but he makes more sense now. Not only has he had a nice season offensively in hitting .307/.331/.417, but he’s added to his versatility in making 18 starts in right field and 10 at third base. The Dodgers figure to use him as a second baseman against lefties for now and also give occasional starts elsewhere against righties. It’d be nice if he was upgrade there from Enrique Hernández while Max Muncy is out. The Rays will likely give some of Rosario’s playing time to Curtis Mead.

Mead joins Tampa Bay’s active roster with Yandy Díaz landing on restricted list due to a personal matter prior to Saturday’s showdown against the Yankees. The 23-year-old former top prospect hasn’t exactly been able to carve out a permanent role at the highest level, but his talent will continue to get him opportunities.

He’ll head down to the minors with Josh Lowe ready to return from the injured list. Mead has batted .218/.269/.276 with one homer and a 23/4 K/BB ratio over 94 plate appearances with the Rays this season. He should get another chance down the line.

After the Tigers rallied to take the lead in the top half of the sixth inning, the Rays tied it up on a two-out RBI single by Ben Rortvedt. Mead then followed by lining a 327-foot (87.3 mph EV) two-run homer off of Will Vest to put the Rays ahead for good. It snuck just over the cut out in left field and would only have been a home run in one of 30 MLB ballparks, fortunately for the Rays it’s the one they played in on Wednesday. The 23-year-old infielder finished the day 1-for-3 and is now hitting .231/.296/.277 with one homer and three RBI on the season.

Lowe will land on the injured list prior to Friday’s series opener against the Giants after undergoing an MRI that revealed a mild oblique strain. The 29-year-old second baseman suffered the injury on Tuesday while warming up for a potential pinch-hit appearance and is likely facing a multi-week absence since oblique issues can be tricky matters. It’ll most likely be former top prospect Curtis Mead taking over at the keystone in his absence.

Lowe returned to Tampa Bay’s lineup over the weekend after a brief absence due to left side tightness and will continue to platoon with top prospect Curtis Mead at the keystone depending on the opposing pitcher. It’s Mead drawing the start on Tuesday night with southpaw Patrick Sandoval toeing the rubber for Los Angeles.

Tampa Bay’s decision to have top prospect Junior Caminero open the season in the minors, in tandem with Jonathan Aranda set to miss a couple weeks with a fractured finger, have opened the door for Mead to break camp in the big leagues. The 23-year-old top prospect struggled last year in his first taste of the majors, but the general consensus seems to be that he wasn’t ever fully healthy after coming back from a wrist injury last May that seemed to sap his offensive numbers.

Aranda will open the season on the injured list after breaking the finger while fielding a ground ball earlier this week. The 25-year-old will have surgery to have a pin placed in the broken finger and is likely to be sidelined until late April or early May. This opens the door for Rays top overall prospect Junior Caminero to potentially make the Opening Day roster as Tampa Bay will need to add another infielder with Aranda sidelined. It also virtually guarantees Curtis Mead a spot on the Rays’ season-opening roster.