Wednesday was already going to be a bullpen day for the Tampa Bay Rays Deion Sanders Jersey , and Tuesday’s 16-inning, 9-6 victory over the Miami Marlins only adds to that, with one or two Rays relievers expected to be added to help provide fresh arms.
The five-hour, 31-minute marathon further taxed the bullpen for Tampa Bay (43-42), with Matt Andriese expected to start Wednesday in Miami after the teams played extra-inning games in the first two contests of the three-game series.
The Rays, continuing their strategy of using relievers as starters, scrapped a scheduled start by Ryne Stanek for the second day in a row, opting to use him in extra innings Monday and Tuesday instead of opening the following day.
Stanek was originally scheduled to start Tuesday, but came in for the 10th inning Monday night. He walked the first batter and then gave up two hits, taking the loss without recording an out to briefly give himself an infinite ERA for his career against the Marlins.
He was then slated to start Wednesday, but came in and pitched the 12th inning Tuesday night Barkevious Mingo Jersey Seahawks , striking out the side to push the game to the 13th inning. He added another scoreless frame, but that took him out of his scheduled role Wednesday, putting more work on an overused bullpen. Nine pitchers were used in Tuesday’s win, requiring at least one roster move just to supply enough live arms to get through Wednesday’s series finale.
Miami used eight pitchers Tuesday, so the Marlins may need to add a reliever for short-term relief as well, under much the same circumstances.
Andriese (1-3, 3.86 ERA) will start two days after he pitched two innings Monday against the Marlins, limiting them to one hit and no runs. That outing came after two straight appearances where he gave up three runs each, raising his season ERA from 3.27 to 4.02.
Andriese will make his fourth start of the season Wednesday, and has handled the Marlins well in his career, with a 1-0 record and 1.69 ERA career appearances against them Cheap Josh Rosen Jersey , including a seven-inning scoreless gem last season.
Miami will start Jose Urena (2-9, 4.40), who is slowly bouncing back from a rough first two months of the season. Urena did not get any wins in his first 12 starts, but is 2-2 since and is just now returning from a stint on the disabled list with right shoulder impingement.
Urena had his best outing of the season two starts ago, going eight scoreless innings and holding Baltimore to three hits while getting the win June 15. He wasn’t as fortunate five days later, lasting 5 2/3 innings and giving up five runs and eight hits in a loss to the Giants.
Urena has never started against the Rays, but carries a 1.59 career ERA in six relief appearances, including five scoreless innings in 2015-16, against Tampa Bay. He pitched well last season, winning 14 games and finishing with a 3.82 ERA.
After this series, the Rays move on to New York for a three-game series with the Mets Jason McCourty Jersey Patriots , while the Marlins go to Washington for a four-game series against the Nationals.
After spending most of his first four seasons in Minnesota as a part-time back, Jerick McKinnon wanted to find a spot in free agency where he could show off his ability as a featured runner.
San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan saw enough from his film over those years to decide he was the player they wanted to be their starting running back, giving him a four-year deal that will guarantee him nearly $12 million in 2018.
"It was big for me," McKinnon said Thursday. "It was what I was hoping to have and looking for instead of staying in Minnesota and being in that third-down back role. I was looking for that opportunity. I'm glad this organization, this team, coach Shanahan felt strong enough about me and brought me in. I believe it's the perfect fit."
The 49ers said they heavily targeted McKinnon and center Weston Richburg as players they wanted to acquire early in free agency. Richburg agreed to a five-year deal on Wednesday and both players were introduced at a news conference Thursday.
McKinnon spent four years in Minnesota mostly as a backup after being drafted in the third round in 2014 after playing mostly quarterback in college at Georgia Southern. He has rushed for 1,918 yards with average of 4.0 yards per carry, has 142 catches for 984 yards, and has scored 12 touchdowns.
McKinnon had his most productive season last year when he ran for a career-high 570 yards,, while setting personal bests with 51 catches for 421 yards.
The addition of McKinnon replaces Carlos Hyde Steelers Authentic Jerseys , who is leaving as a free agent for Cleveland. McKinnon has more speed and is a better receiving threat than Hyde and should fit well into Shanahan's offense.
"He's good enough to make it as a runner alone in this league. He's good enough to make it in the pass game as just a third down threat alone, but when you can do both of those, it gives you a lot of freedom as a coach," Shanahan said. "Based off of what downs you put him in and that when you do put him in, the defense doesn't know exactly what type of plays you're trying to run because he can do it all."
Richburg spent the past four seasons with the New York Giants but played only four games last year because of a concussion. He began his career as a left guard before moving to center in 2015. He played there the past three seasons and is considered one of the top pass-blocking players at the position and has the athleticism to thrive in Shanahan's zone-running scheme.
The Niners are hoping Richburg has a similar impact in San Francisco as Alex Mack had in Atlanta when he joined the Falcons when Shanahan was offensive coordinator there.
"I've been around some real good ones in my career," Shanahan said. "He's put it all on tape and he looks right there with all those guys and that's why I value him a ton off the tape. Didn't know a ton about him until I turned on the tape and it was as good as I've seen."
With Richburg in place, the Niners traded last year's starting center Daniel Kilgore to Miami in a deal that included a swap of seventh-round picks. The 49ers had signed Kilgore to a three-year extension last month but felt Richburg was the better option at center so worked to find a new spot for Kilgore.
It's been a busy offseason already for San Francisco. The Niners signed quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a five-year deal last month before he even hit free agency, signed cornerback Richard Sherman after he was cut by Seattle, re-signed defensive lineman Cassius Marsh and offensive lineman Garry Gilliam and gave an extension to receiver Marquise Goodwin.
The team also signed defensive lineman Jeremiah Attaochu to a one-year deal Thursday to help bolster the pass rush and still could make a few more moves to upgrade a team that won its final five games last season after Garoppolo took over as starter to finish 6-10.
"We feel like we've improved our team greatly and that excites us," general manager John Lynch said.
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