Patiño (tightness) scratched from spring debut

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Over the past few days, the Rays received two pieces of news that reinforced the logic behind their decision to ease pitchers through this abbreviated Spring Training camp.

On Monday, top prospect Shane Baz underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow despite reporting to Spring Training healthy and wowing coaches in an early bullpen session. The same day, right-hander Luis Patiño informed Tampa Bay’s staff he didn’t feel up to making his scheduled start on Tuesday afternoon.

So Patiño was scratched, and Chris Mazza started in his place in the Rays’ 4-2 loss to the Red Sox at Charlotte Sports Park. The Rays now intend to have the 22-year-old right-hander throw a bullpen session on Wednesday before scheduling his next appearance, which could come in a Grapefruit League game or a backfield setting.

“I actually applaud him; we all applaud him. Young kid, he just said, 'Look, I don't feel right, as good as I want to feel.' So we're going to give him a day or two,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “Not overly concerning right now, but concerning enough that we're going to make a decision to bump him. We know we've got condensed time [before Opening Day], but we're going to prioritize all of the guys' health.”

Tuesday would have been Patiño’s first outing of the spring, as Tampa Bay held back every pitcher on the 40-man roster from the club’s first three Grapefruit League games. But Cash said Patiño felt “some tightness” throughout his body, which could have been a result of nothing more than getting into a regular routine of pitching, maintenance and treatment. Cash said Patiño was not scheduled for any further testing.

Rays avoid arbitration hearings
The Rays had a lot of work to do leading up to Tuesday’s deadline to exchange salary figures with arbitration-eligible players, with a group of 13 arb-eligible players remaining. But they took care of business, reaching agreements with all 13 to set their salaries and avoid any potentially awkward arbitration hearings during the regular season.

The Rays agreed to the following one-year deals on Tuesday, according to sources and media reports:

Manuel Margot: $5.6 million
Tyler Glasnow: $5.1 million
Austin Meadows: $4 million
Ryan Yarbrough: $3.85 million
Yandy Díaz: $2.8 million
Matt Wisler: $2.16 million
Andrew Kittredge: $1.85 million
Francisco Mejía: $1.455 million
Brett Phillips: $1.4 million
Yonny Chirinos: $1.175 million
Jeffrey Springs: $947,500
Nick Anderson: $845,000
Jalen Beeks: $750,000

Before the lockout, the Rays and Ji-Man Choi also avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $3.2 million deal.

Around the horn
• Kevin Kiermaier, limited by a stiff neck the first few days of camp, made his Grapefruit League debut on Tuesday and went 1-for-2 with an infield single (beating former Rays lefty Rich Hill to the bag) while playing five innings in center field. Kiermaier looked like himself, hustling for an infield single in the second inning then firing a strong throw back into the infield in the third.

“I wanted to run a little bit, test that out. Was happy to see my former teammate, Rich Hill … so it was nice to get that first one out of the way,” Kiermaier said. “It’s nice to have a ball hit to me and make a good, competitive throw. So I got tested a little bit more than what I've been used to in first games in years past, and I'll take that.”

The challenge now, Kiermaier noted, is getting ready for the regular season in two weeks but not rushing too fast to get there.

“We’ve got to kind of push our bodies to the limits and be smart about it at the same time,” Kiermaier said. “I'm going to just try to keep increasing the intensity as time goes on, so once Opening Day gets here, it's like, ‘OK, the adrenaline is going to be back. We've got to flip the switch and be ready to really get this thing going.’”

• Mazza put together two strong innings, striking out two without allowing a hit, then gave up two singles in the third before exiting. Right-hander Adrian De Horta allowed both runners to score on a double by Bobby Dalbec.

“Mazza has thrown very well. We’re all very excited about where he’s at,” Cash said. “Very crisp. A lot of strikes.”

• Left-handers Ryan Yarbrough (two-plus innings), Josh Fleming (one inning) and righty Ryan Thompson (one inning) faced hitters in live batting practice on Tuesday.

Up next
Left-hander Shane McClanahan will make his Spring Training debut on Wednesday as the Rays face the Braves at CoolToday Park in North Port. Also scheduled to pitch are new lefty reliever Brooks Raley and right-handers J.P. Feyereisen, Matt Wisler, JT Chargois and Tommy Romero. Randy Arozarena, Meadows, Choi and Phillips are among the regular position players expected to be in the lineup. The television broadcast will be available through Bally Sports South and MLB.TV.