Pete

Fairbanks

Tampa Bay is shutting down Fairbanks and Jeffrey Springs. The club sees no reason to rush either back to return this season and both will be healthy for next year. Fairbanks had a 3.27 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 44 strikeouts to go along with 23 saves in 45 1/3 innings this year.

It’s quite possible he’ll miss the rest of the year. Jason Adam is gone to San Diego, so there’s probably no big favorite for saves in the Tampa Bay pen while Fairbanks is out. Drew Rasmussen is the most intriguing reliever in the bunch, but the Rays have been using him as an opener and want him to have a structured workload in his first weeks back from Tommy John. Edwin Uceta is probably the best pickup of the bunch, but no one is a must-add guy right now. Also, Uceta probably won’t be available tonight, since he’s thrown 36 pitches the last two days.

Fairbanks sustained the injury during Sunday’s outing against the Diamondbacks where he allowed three runs on three hits and a walk in his 2/3 of an inning. As always, expect the Rays to utilize a closer-by-committee approach while Fairbanks is sidelined.

Corbin Carroll hit a game-tying homer with two outs. The Diamondbacks had another hit afterwards, but Fairbanks finished the inning from there and got the win after the Rays scored in the bottom of the ninth. The blown save was Fairbanks’ first in 14 tries since June 20.

Shout out to Fairbanks and the rest of the Rays’ bullpen for shutting out Baltimore over four innings to put their team in position to steal this game. Fairbanks hasn’t blown a save since June 20th as he’s enjoying yet another fantastic season despite some struggles early on.

Fairbanks has allowed just one hit while throwing scoreless innings in his last six appearances. His current 2.88 ERA is his lowest mark since he gave up a run in his second appearance of the year on Apr. 2.

Fairbanks’ save was his 21st of the season. He struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning. Fairbanks has a 2.95 ERA on the year. He remains a very reliable fantasy closer.

It might be his last for Tampa Bay, unless the team decides it needs him back for 2025, which would be his walk year. He’ll definitely draw a nice return; health has long been an issue for him and his velocity is down a bit this year, but he remains one of the game’s most talented relievers.

The Rays have already started their selling by trading away Randy Arozarena to the Mariners, so moving on from Fairbanks wouldn’t be a major surprise either. The 30-year-old right-hander is under team control through the 2025 season and the Rays hold a team option on him for the 2026 campaign. He holds a 3.19 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and a 34/16 K/BB ratio across 36 2/3 innings on the season while converting 19 saves and picking up a pair of victories.

Fairbanks didn’t strike out a batter in this one, but the veteran closer did throw a 1-2-3 inning to shut down the Jays on Tuesday. Fairbanks has allowed three earned runs over seven innings in July but is a perfect 6-for-6 in save opportunities on the month. He remains a solid option out of the bullpen for his fantasy managers.