The Rays have signed Joey Krehbiel to a minor league deal with an invite to major league spring training, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The right-hander is represented by Loren Pincus.
Krehbiel, 32, didn’t crack the majors in 2024. He signed a minor league deal with the Mariners about this time last year. He went on to throw 58 innings over 54 appearances for their Triple-A club, allowing 3.26 earned runs per nine. His 22.8% strikeout rate, 10.4% walk rate and 44.9% ground ball rate were all within a point or two of typical averages.
He does have 74 innings of major league experience, most of that coming as an Oriole in 2022, though he also spent time with the Diamondbacks and Rays prior to joining Baltimore. He has a 3.65 ERA in his big league career with an 18.4% strikeout rate, 8.7% walk rate and 42.8% ground ball rate.
His previous stint with the Rays was in 2021, signing a minor league deal going into that year as well. His minor league work that year was arguably his most impressive performance in recent years. He tossed 43 Triple-A innings with a 4.19 ERA, 29.5% strikeout rate and 5.1% walk rate. That got him a brief stint on the major league roster in September, before he went the Orioles on waivers. Baltimore kept him around for a while, though he lost his roster spot during the 2023 season, which led to his minor league deal with the Mariners.
The Rays are obviously familiar with Krehbiel and got some decent results out of him a few years ago, so the two sides have reunited. If he can earn his way onto the roster, he still has an option, which is surely attractive for a team like the Rays as they frequently churn pitchers through the roster. Krehbiel also has less than two years of service time, so he could be cheaply retained beyond this year if he’s holding a roster spot at season’s end.