Rays’ Jose Siri hit by pitch, fractures right hand

MINNEAPOLIS — Rays centerfielder Jose Siri will be sidelined until at least the end of the regular season after sustaining a non-displaced fracture on the bottom of his right hand Monday after being hit by a pitch in the fifth inning.

The Rays will have a better sense of the timetable after Siri is seen by team hand specialist Dr. Doug Carlan in St. Petersburg later this week, but manager Kevin Cash said based on the initial imaging done at Target Field “there’s some hope that maybe it’s a short stint, maybe three weeks of shutdown and it heals up quickly.”

Siri jumped out of the batter’s box, ran a few steps toward the Rays dugout, then went down to his knees in obvious pain and was attended to by team staff. He initially stayed in the game to run the bases, but was taken out at the end of the inning.

“It hurt a a lot since it was a hit by pitch on the hand,” said Siri, via team interpreter Manny Navarro. “I felt bad that I had to come out of the game; I wanted to stay in. But obviously I felt something in there. I’ve just got to keep on working so I can make a quick return.”

Siri said he had no issue with the pitch thrown by Twins reliever Dylan Floro.

Siri provides elite defense in centerfield, game-changing speed on the bases and is second on the team with 25 home runs, so his absence will be felt in many ways.

“I think everybody knows what Siri brings to the table,” shortstop Taylor Walls said. “His speed, the ability to play defense in centerfield, his power at the plate. He’s been turning it on recently; he just had a home-to-third (run) that was so impressive to watch. He’s got some some special skills. So it’s unfortunate.

“Hopefully he can get back and he can heal and maybe have a chance to come back in the postseason. But yeah, I mean, that’s a tough loss.”

Or, as starter Tyler Glasnow said, “It sucks.”

The Rays don’t have an obvious replacement at the moment.

Veteran outfielder Manuel Margot, who had bone chips removed from his right elbow on Aug. 16, is set to start a planned six-day rehab assignment for Triple-A Durham on Tuesday with the potential to be activated early next week, and the Rays aren’t going to want to rush his return.

In the interim, they are likely to use Josh Lowe and Luke Raley in center and initially call up rookie infielder Curtis Mead, with versatile Vidal Brujan serving as an additional outfielder if needed. They do have two outfielders with big-league experience in their minor-league system: Raimel Tapia is at Durham and Billy Hamilton is working his way back into game form.

Help on the way

The Rays are hoping to get leading home run hitter Isaac Paredes back in the lineup Tuesday, as he has been sidelined since Friday after also being hit on the right hand by a pitch.

Paredes, who has 29 homers and a team-high 89 RBIs, said before Monday’s game that the soreness has been subsiding.

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He did some defensive work and said he was going to try gripping a bat, potentially taking some swings, during Monday’s game.

“I feel a lot better (Monday) than I did (Sunday),” said Paredes, via Navarro. “It’s just a little bit (sore), not a lot.”

Margot will start his rehab assignment with Durham with a plan to DH on Tuesday, play the outfield Wednesday, be off Thursday, then play the outfield Friday, DH Saturday and play the outfield again Sunday. He could rejoin the Rays on Sept. 19 when they return home to host the Angels.

“There’s a chance if he gets his at-bats in and he feels good that we could be looking at activating him right at the beginning of the homestand,” Cash said.

Reliever Jason Adam, sidelined since Aug. 31 with a left oblique strain, is progressing in his recovery, with a bullpen session planned for Wednesday and a hope to return before the end of the regular season.

Zack Littell feeling good

Zack Littell said the career-high eight innings he worked Thursday in his last outing did not impact his recovery or between-starts work. And, given that he threw only 86 pitches, they shouldn’t be a factor in Tuesday’s start.

“I’ve said this every week, it’s just making sure that I feel physically 110% versus really trying to go out there and work on stuff or trying to figure stuff out,” he said.

“At this point in the season a lot of us are just making sure that we feel good physically. And that’s been the focus. Happy with how I bounced back, happy with how I feel now.”

Littell also was happy to be back in Minnesota, having made his major-league debut here for the Twins on June 5, 2018, called up from Triple A to start the second game of a doubleheader.

“I’ve always loved Minnesota,” he said. “I’ve always said that — the stadium, the people here, the city. I love coming back here and obviously really good memories, excited to pitch here again, excited to start here again. So it’ll be fun.”

Miscellany

The Rays are 31-16 in series openers, fourth best in the majors. … Yandy Diaz logged his American League-leading 17th game with at least three hits. … Walls’ homer was his first since May 14, snapping a career-long 52-game streak without. ... Josh Lowe had a second straight three-hit game. ... Target Field was the last stadium for the Rays to make their first visit of the season, and there was a floral display in the visiting radio booth in tribute to Dave Wills, the broadcaster who passed away in March.

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