Raley is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
The lefty-hitting Raley started each of the past three games, but he'll head to the bench for the series finale while southpaw Justin Steele toes the rubber for Chicago. Though he doesn't have a direct path to a regular lineup spot at any one position, Raley's ability to play first base and the corner outfield or to serve as a designated hitter should afford him fairly steady playing time while he's wielding a hot bat.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Swipes seventh bag
Rotowire
Raley went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI, three runs scored and a steal in Sunday's 11-10 victory over the Dodgers.
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Raley has emerged as an unlikely source of steals -- he's now 7-for-7 on stolen base attempts, all coming in his last 12 games. Raley has had a productive season with the bat as well. He's now slashing .254/.346/.568 with 10 homers, 21 RBI and 23 runs scored through 136 plate appearances while playing the long side of a platoon in Tampa.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Picks up another start
Rotowire
Raley will start in left field and bat eighth in Sunday's game against the Dodgers.
Raley's path to playing time at first base is more muddled now that Yandy Diaz has returned to the team following a brief absence due to a personal matter, but Raley could continue to see semi-frequent starts as a fourth outfielder or designated hitter. The 28-year-old -- who has posted an .862 OPS while chipping in six stolen bases thus far in May -- will spell a resting Randy Arozarena in left field in Sunday's series finale.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Chipping in stolen bases
Rotowire
Raley went 0-for-2 with two walks, two runs scored and two stolen bases Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Raley didn't have a big game at first glance, though his pair of stolen bases gives him six on the campaign. He entered the season having failed to even attempt a stolen base across 144 career plate appearances. Raley is also a significant source of power production with 10 home runs and is a regular in the Rays' lineup against right-handed pitchers.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Pops ninth homer
Rotowire
Raley went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Monday against the Blue Jays.
Raley popped his ninth home run of the season off Chris Bassitt in the seventh inning. It was his first homer since April 30, a span of 15 games and 43 at-bats. Raley remains a regular in the lineup with right-handers on the mound, though he has yet to start against a southpaw this season.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Slugs eighth homer in win
Rotowire
Raley went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Monday's win 3-0 win over the Orioles.
Raley continues to be an all-or-nothing hitter, slugging eight home runs over 85 plate appearances while striking out 30 times. Given his prolific power numbers, it'll be hard to keep him out of the starting lineup. However, the Rays have numerous offensive threats, so they may choose to keep playing him exclusively against right-handed starters.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Gets start at first base
Rotowire
Raley is starting at first base and batting eighth for the Rays on Monday in Baltimore, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Yandy Diaz will slide into the designated hitter spot while Raley handles first. Raley has been a true all-or-nothing hitter this season, slugging seven home runs while posting a 39.7 percent strikeout rate.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Swats two homers
Rotowire
Raley went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBI in Sunday's 12-9 loss to the White Sox.
Raley went back-to-back with Taylor Walls in the fourth inning for his first home run of the day, which was a solo shot. He then went back-to-back again, this time with Christian Bethancourt in the eighth for a two-run blast. Raley now has five hits, three homers and six RBI over his last three games and continues to be a lineup fixture against righties only. He upped his slash line to .226/.300/.613 and raised his OPS to .913 after the two-homer day.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Has first three-hit game of season
Rotowire
Raley went 3-for-5 with one double, one home run, three RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's win over the White Sox.
This was Raley's best game at the plate since April 3 against Washington, when he smacked two homers. That was the outfielder's only other multi-hit game of the year. The 28-year-old will look to keep improving on his .214/.286/.536 slash line, but he does have five home runs and 12 RBI in 19 games.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Goes long Sunday
Rotowire
Raley went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in Sunday's 4-1 win over the White Sox.
Raley got the scoring started for the Rays with a two-run blast off Lucas Giolito in the second inning, keeping the streak alive for the Rays who have now homered in each of their first 22 games. Raley broke a five-game hitting slump and is struggling to a slash line of .188/.273/.479. He has four home runs, nine RBI and a 4:19 BB:K and has solely hit against righties this year.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Moves to bench Monday
Rotowire
Raley is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Reds, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Raley, Josh Lowe and Harold Ramirez all appear to be vying for two regular spots in the lineup versus right-handed pitching, and Raley will find himself as the odd man out Monday. Since slugging three home runs in his first five games of the season, Raley has slashed .174/.269/.261 over a stretch of eight contests.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Garners another start
Rotowire
Raley is starting in left field and batting fifth for the Rays on Friday in Toronto.
Raley has been in the lineup all nine times the Rays have faced a right-hander this season and hasn't hit lower than fifth. He hasn't done much outside of a two-game stretch against the Nationals earlier this month, but Tampa Bay clearly wants to see what he can do versus righties.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Sitting against lefty
Rotowire
Raley is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Red Sox, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
The lefty-hitting Raley will see a string of four straight starts come to an end with Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash opting to play matchups against Boston southpaw Chris Sale. Tampa Bay is going with an all-righty-hitting outfield of Randy Arozarena, Manuel Margot and Harold Ramirez from left to right.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Out against lefty
Rotowire
Raley isn't in the Rays' lineup for Friday's game against the Athletics, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.
After going deep three times in two games, Raley will now miss his second straight game with lefty Ken Waldichuk starting the game for Oakland. Harold Ramirez will serve as Tampa Bay's designated hitter instead, batting fifth.
Raley went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in Tuesday's 10-6 win over the Nationals.
After his first-inning sacrifice fly gave the Rays an early 3-0 lead, Raley took Nats closer Kyle Finnegan deep in the ninth to kick-start a three-homer, five-run comeback. Raley has gone yard three times in the last two games and is hitting .308 (4-for-13) to begin the season with four runs and six RBI, and he appears to be bashing his way into a strong-side platoon role in Tampa Bay's OF/1B/DH mix. The 28-year-old's career .298/.390/.544 slash line over 168 games at Triple-A comes with 40 homers and 19 steals, so this production could be legit, but he has yet to prove he's more than just a Quad-A player.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Goes deep twice Monday
Rotowire
Raley went 2-for-3 with a pair of home runs, a walk and three total RBI in Monday's 6-2 win over the Nationals.
Raley was the surprise offensive star for Tampa Bay in the team's fourth straight win, as he kicked off the scoring with a two-run homer in the first inning and added a solo shot in the eighth. Raley has gotten into each of the Rays' first four games this season, going 3-for-10 with four RBI.
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Rays' Luke Raley: May start season in Tampa Bay
Rotowire
Raley is likely to earn a roster spot out of spring training, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Raley reworked his swing by lessening his leg kick, and he appears to have parlayed that into strong results this spring. Across 45 plate appearances in the Grapefruit League, he's delivered a .326/.396/.721 line. While that won't be replicable during the regular season, it is likely to be enough to earn him a bench spot on the roster -- and the fact that he's out of minor-league options also helps. Raley could back up Yandy Diaz at first base in addition to seeing action in the outfield.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Nabs roster spot in Tampa Bay
Rotowire
Raley has made the Rays' Opening Day roster, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Raley has popped five home runs this spring and is out of options, so his spot on the Opening Day roster had seemed pretty secure. The 28-year-old might wind up playing a decent amount against righties as the Rays do their usual mixing and matching and his pop warrants attention in single-league formats and some deep mixed leagues.
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Rays' Luke Raley: Reworked swing
Rotowire
Raley reworked his swing during the offseason by bringing his hands closer to his body and lessening his leg kick, Brian Murphy of MLB.com reports.
The 2022 season was Raley's first with the Rays, and he earned 72 plate appearances in the majors. Heading into 2023, he's out of minor-league options, so will be looking to earn a role with the big-league club out of spring training. He's helped his case by hitting well early in Grapefruit League action, tallying five hits across 15 at-bats -- including three home runs -- while striking out only twice.
