Joe Boyle News: Will stay in tandem with Rasmussen

Rays manager Kevin Cash suggested after Sunday's 7-5 extra-inning win over the Twins that he intends to have Boyle piggyback Drew Rasmussen for at least a few more turns through the rotation, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Though Rasmussen has moved back into a full-time starting role in 2025 after undergoing the third major elbow surgery of his career in July 2023, the Rays are aiming to limit him to around 150 innings this season. Just over halfway into the campaign, Rasmussen has already compiled 89.1 innings, so the Rays will stick to their plan of managing his workload so that he can be available in some capacity through the rest of the regular season and potentially into the playoffs. The Rays took the first step in curtailing Rasmussen's workload Sunday, when Boyle was called up from Triple-A Durham to pitch in bulk relief behind him. After Rasmussen covered the first two frames, Boyle stepped in and covered the next five innings, striking out seven batters while allowing an unearned run on two hits and one walk. Cash didn't go into specifics regarding how long past the All-Star break the Rasmussen/Boyle pairing might be used or whether Rasmussen would continue to be capped at around two innings, but for fantasy purposes, the arrangement is certainly more favorable to Boyle than Rasmussen. By continuing to work in bulk relief on the days he pitches, Boyle will be the Rays hurler most likely to factor into any decision. In addition to the increased win potential, Boyle looks like he could make a major impact for fantasy managers in the ratio categories. He's submitted a 1.85 ERA and 22.3 K-BB% over 73 innings at Durham this season, and he's maintained that dominance through his two appearances with the Rays thus far, turning in a 0.00 ERA, 0.50 WHIP and 14:3 K:BB through 10 frames.