PT TOMORROW: AL East: Spring battles resolve… or do they?

Tampa Bay Rays

Matt Duffy (3B, TAM) returned to the field March 21 after missing three weeks with a hamstring injury but struck out in each of his three plate appearances. After the game, he sounded like a player resigning himself to opening the year on the injured list, acknowledging that he needs to “be honest” so as to not hurt the team by trying to play before he is fully ready.

When the platoon-happy Rays face a right-handed pitcher, Brandon Lowe (2B, TAM) figures to be in the lineup somewhere, with the options in Duffy’s absence to either have him play second base with Joey Wendle (2B, TAM) shifting over to third base or, as Matt Dodge indicated recently in Playing Time Today, have Lowe DH, which would presumably open third base...

Almost!

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