This story was excerpted from Adam Berry¡¯s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
ST. PETERSBURG -- As he assumed his position in the Rays¡¯ bullpen at Tropicana Field before Friday night¡¯s series opener against the Red Sox, Colin Poche gave himself a moment to take it all in and think about what it took for him to get back there.
The last time Poche had pitched in a Major League game at that point was Oct. 10, 2019: Game 5 of the Rays¡¯ American League Division Series against the Astros. He¡¯d spent a long time recovering from Tommy John surgery, grinding through days of often-monotonous rehab work with an eye on that moment.
¡°Walking out there for the first time for a game again, almost got a little emotional, just kind of taking it all in, thinking about the journey over the last few years,¡± Poche said. ¡°A pretty special day.¡±
Poche quickly reminded everyone he has a pretty special arm, too. The lefty struck out one batter in a perfect, six-pitch seventh inning against the Red Sox. On Sunday, he walked one batter and struck out another in a hitless eighth inning to help preserve the Rays¡¯ 5-2 win. He¡¯s thrown 18 pitches, all those familiar (and seemingly ¡°rising¡±) fastballs, with velocity (93.2 mph) right around where he left off in ¡¯19 (92.9).
¡°I felt good,¡± Poche said Friday. ¡°They were all strikes, so that's always good just to be around the plate and everything. You always give yourself a chance if you're throwing strikes.¡±
The Rays are going to ask a lot of their relievers this season, like any other year, and it seems clear they¡¯re going to get a lot from pitchers returning from injuries that cost them some or all of last season: Jeffrey Springs, Ryan Thompson, Jalen Beeks and Poche.
Poche was Tampa Bay¡¯s Minor League Reliever of the Year in 2018, when he struck out 110(!) batters with a 0.82 ERA in 66 innings. The fact that he was thrown into important situations immediately after being recalled from Triple-A Durham says everything you need to know about how highly he¡¯s thought of by manager Kevin Cash and the Rays¡¯ coaching staff.
¡°His outing [Friday] was the best outing we've seen from him since well before his injury. It was almost like right when he got called up,¡± Cash said. ¡°There might have been something in his arm for a little while. He pitched through it, but glad to see his velo back up.¡±