ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays received some injury news on Thursday, placing right-hander Yonny Chirinos on the 10-day injured list with right triceps inflammation, retroactive to Monday.

Chirinos felt discomfort during his last outing against the Orioles and brought it to the attention of the medical staff following his bullpen session. Though it’s unclear how much time Chirinos will miss due to injury, Rays manager Kevin Cash said that the right-hander felt “much, much better” on Friday and they will re-evaluate him in a couple of days.

“Hopefully it’s a quick turnaround. He’s a big part of what we’re trying to do,” said Cash. “We don’t want to lose too much time, but we felt like it was smart to take a cautious approach here, skip a start, and see where we’re at.”

Losing Chirinos is another blow to the Rays, who are 5-7 after 12 games. In two starts this season, Chirinos has a 1.04 ERA over 8 2/3 innings, and his 0.4 bWAR is the highest of the five Tampa Bay starters.

The earliest Chirinos can return from the IL is Aug. 13. Chirinos has had a history of injuries in his short time in the Majors, including a right middle finger injury that cost him the majority of the final two months last season.

With Chirinos heading to the IL, the Rays recalled right-hander Trevor Richards from the alternate training site in Port Charlotte, Fla. Richards will join the bullpen and will be available to provide bulk innings over the weekend, particularly during Saturday’s doubleheader against the Yankees.

Chirinos was scheduled to start one of the games against the Yankees on Saturday, but the Rays will now have to lean on a bullpen day for one of the two days. Cash mentioned that the club is leaning towards starting Tyler Glasnow in the first game against Gerrit Cole and going with a bullpen game in the second game. That decision, however, won’t be made until after Friday’s game.

“We have four games in three days that we have to concern ourselves with,” Cash said. “[Richards] will be available in any one of these games and then we’ll see how much usage we put on all these guys before announcing what we’re going to do with that spot before Yonny’s turn comes around.”

Cash also said that the decision to go with Richards over Brendan McKay was because Richards can provide bulk innings, while McKay is still building up at the alternate training site after missing the majority of Summer Camp due to a positive COVID-19 test.

Alvarado to the paternity list; Gilmartin selected
Before Friday’s game, the Rays placed José Alvarado on the paternity list after welcoming the birth of his child and selected the contract of left-hander Sean Gilmartin.

Gilmartin is active for Friday’s game against the Yankees and is available to provide length, according to Cash. Gilmartin has pitched up to four innings at the alternate training site. Cash said that the team is optimistic that Alvarado will return to the team for Saturday’s doubleheader.

In order to make room on the 40-man roster for Gilmartin, the Rays moved outfielder Manuel Margot from the bereavement list to the COVID-19 related IL. Margot went to the Dominican Republic after the death of his father and will be subject to intake testing over the weekend. If all goes well, Margot could return to the club on Sunday.