The Tampa Bay Rays are in the middle of a postseason race as the calendar flips to July. They are playing well, but there is always room to improve. The starting pitchers have generally held up their end of the bargain, but Taj Bradley has experienced a turbulent season. The Rays have a young pitcher dominating at AAA and seemingly on the verge of a promotion. Is it time to call up Joe Boyle to the big leagues?
The Rays Found Another Good Pitcher
With the Athletics coming to Steinbrenner Field, it feels like a good time to revisit the Jeffrey Springs trade last December. The move was made because Tampa Bay had an abundance of pitching options. Also, the Rays wanted to start laying the foundation of their rotation in the future. Since the Rays will never win a bidding war over Max Fried’s services, trades like these are important for a club like Tampa Bay.
Joe Boyle Is Getting Rays Fans Excited
Boyle was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 5th round of the 2020 MLB draft with the 143rd overall selection. He was eventually dealt to the then-Oakland Athletics and remained in the Bay Area until last December. He started 2025 with the AAA Durham Bulls. In 14 games started, he has a 1.85 ERA and 0.99 WHIP. Boyle made a spot appearance for the Rays in early April with five innings of two-run ball (zero earned runs). Possessing a fastball, slider and changeup at least 90 mph, the three pitches are generating plenty of swing and miss. The walk rate is a little high, but he yielded less free passes in June and now has 96 strikeouts in 73 innings. It seems to be a question of when, not if, Boyle will eventually be pitching at the MLB level.
Taj Bradley Has Experienced a Choppy Season
Bradley has a 4.57 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 86.2 innings pitched and 16 games started. His numbers feel skewed by allowing 12 runs against the Marlins and 11 runs in just 6.2 innings to the Baltimore Orioles. In the midst of his third big league season, Bradley has struggled with command issues over the course of his career. He is walking 9.6% of batters this season which would shatter his previous career marks. On the other hand, he can limit hard contact and produce a hefty amount of ground balls.
The Rays are a top 10 pitching staff and can’t afford too many subpar pitching performances if they want to chase down the Yankees. Bradley struggled in his rookie year too but is only 24 years old and should have plenty of prime years ahead. The Rays have to start thinking about what their potential postseason rotation would look like. Are they comfortable with everyone currently in it?
Is a Promotion for Boyle Coming?
Boyle is doing everything within his power to earn this opportunity. He may have a difficult time breaking through because the same five starters have taken the ball every five days. Having said that, the Rays have a history of pitching injuries and should take it easy with the current five. A six-man rotation at some point this summer may not be the worst idea.
Zack Littell is a reliever-turned-starter and only last year started at least 25 games. Same for Drew Rasmussen and that was three years ago. Shane Baz sat out the 2023 season rehabbing from Tommy John Surgery and is entering uncharted workload territory. Ryan Pepiot is approximately 30 innings away from matching his career high 130 last season. Shane McClanahan is a question mark when he comes back and who knows what his availability for a postseason run would look like.
Pitching is a funny thing because one minute you feel great about the arms, and the next minute nothing is working. The Rays can afford to proceed with caution, but Boyle is making a strong case for a promotion.
Main Photo Credits: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
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