TAMPA, Fla. ¨C For Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot, it was a complicated mix of emotions.
He was elevated to Opening Day starter, which he equated to a childhood dream, and he¡¯ll be charged with setting the season¡¯s positive tone. But that honor comes at a price: Ace left-hander Shane McClanahan, who had earned the first-game assignment as expected, will begin the season on the injured list after suffering ¡°nerve irritation¡¯¡¯ and leaving Saturday¡¯s game in Port Charlotte.
¡°I¡¯m excited to take the ball and compete my butt off,¡¯¡¯ Pepiot said Sunday after starting and working two hitless innings in a Grapefruit League 3-3 tie against the Yankees at Steinbrenner Field, the same place where the Rays will return on Friday afternoon against the Rockies as the organization settles into its temporary home for the 2025 season.
¡°On my end, as a kid watching baseball and knowing that Opening Day is a special day, it¡¯s obviously very exciting and I¡¯m happy about it. But at the same time, it¡¯s a little somber. One of my good friends [McClanahan] is down and hurt. But I¡¯m going to go out there like I always do, trying to give my team the best chance to win.¡¯¡¯
Sunday seemed very routine for Pepiot, who faced seven batters while collecting three strikeouts and walking one (Aaron Judge after building a 1-2 count). Pepiot threw 35 pitches, 23 for strikes, with five swing-and-misses.
Pepiot was 8-8 with a 3.60 ERA last season, his first with the Rays after being acquired in a trade with the Dodgers in December 2023.
¡°Pepiot¡¯s body of work was really impressive last year,¡¯¡¯ Rays manager Kevin Cash said. ¡°It made sense [to name Pepiot as Opening Day starter], given how the rotation was put in place to begin with.
¡°He said it was not necessarily the way he wanted it [an Opening Day start], being a good teammate, but I told him he¡¯s got to find a way to separate that because it is a big honor to pitch on Opening Day.¡¯¡¯
Cash said the Rays figure to follow Pepiot with Taj Bradley, Drew Rasmussen, Shane Baz and Zack Littell in a five-man starting rotation.
With McClanahan expected to miss some time, his roster spot was filled by bullpen arm Hunter Bigge, who had been previously sent to the Minors.
Cash said it was incumbent on the Rays¡¯ staff to pick up the early-season slack.
¡°You don¡¯t replace Shane McClanahan,¡¯¡¯ Cash said. ¡°There¡¯s only one of them. But this is where [Rays management] does such a good job of understanding that you¡¯re going to need so many crucial contributors throughout the course of the season. Fortunately for us, we feel like we have [depth], but every injury takes a toll. Every injury cuts into your depth a little bit more. So we need to do everything we can to continue to prevent those [injuries].¡¯¡¯
Inside the Rays¡¯ clubhouse, Pepiot¡¯s teammates expressed confidence in the pitching staff.
¡°He¡¯s a dawg on the mound,¡¯¡¯ center fielder Jonny DeLuca said. ¡°I came over with him from the Dodgers [in the 2023 trade], so I¡¯ve been able to see him pitch for a while. Standard pitcher¡¯s mentality. He throws strikes and gets the job done. I think [Pepiot¡¯s stuff] is about as filthy as you can get. He¡¯s very competitive, and we all have trust in him to get the job done.¡¯¡¯
Pepiot said he¡¯s excited about Friday, which will feature his own personal cheering section, including his parents from Indianapolis. But Pepiot said he¡¯s also intent on remaining grounded.
¡°I¡¯m not going to put any pressure on myself,¡¯¡¯ Pepiot said. ¡°I¡¯m just going to go out there and pitch the way I pitch. If I try to pitch like Shane ¨C obviously, I¡¯m not left-handed ¨C that wouldn¡¯t go very well.
¡°It¡¯s like when the trade happened, when I first got here. [Cash and pitching coach Kyle Snyder] said, ¡®Hey, we want you to be Ryan, we don¡¯t want you to be [Tyler Glasnow], so you don¡¯t have to be that guy.¡¯ All of us are going to step up and fill that void, but none of us are going to be Shane. We just need to be ourselves and pitch our game.¡¯¡¯