Rays Place Outfielder Jake Mangum on Injured List With Groin Injury
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The Tampa Bay Rays have had a hard time keeping outfielders healthy, and they got more bad news on Thursday when Jake Mangum had to go on the 10-day injured list with a groin injury.
Mangum is the fourth Rays outfielder to hit the injured list this season. Richie Palacios missed the start of the season with a finger injury, then played in one game before hurting his knee and going on the IL. Josh Lowe (oblique) got hurt on Opening Day and center fielder Jonny Deluca (shoulder) went down on April 7, All four are currently on the IL.
Tampa Bay infielder Coco Montes was recalled after the Mangum injury. He with with the Rays last week, but was sent down on Sunday when center fielder Chandler Simpson was called up. With Mangum out, utlitiy man Jose Caballero will probably see more time in the outfield now. He's seen action at shortstop several times in the past week.
Mangum has been one of the Rays' best players so far this season. He is hitting .338 with four doubles and seven RBIs. He also leads the team with eight stolen bases. He was injured in the fourth inning of Wednesday's win. He pulled up while running to first base after hitting a ground ball to third base.
Mangum's 23 hits are third-most among major-league rookies behind the Athletics' Jacob Wilson
(30) and Boston's Kristian Campbell (24). His eight stolen bases are tied for the American League lead with Toronto's Andrés Giménez. Mangum is 8-for-8 on stolen base opportunities, tying Damian Rolls
(2001) for the third-most consecutive steals without being caught to open a career in Tampa Bay history, trailing Evan Longoria (16 stolen bases in 2008-09) and Josh Lowe (nine stolen bases from 2021-23).
The Rays finish their series with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night in Phoenix, Ariz. The game starts at 9:40 p.m. ET. Drew Rasmussen will start for the Rays, and Corbin Burnes gets the call for the Diamondbacks.
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- RAYS LOSE SERIES OPENER (Tues.): Tampa Bay started its West Coast trip on the wrong foot Tuesday, losing 5-1 to the Arizona Diamondbacks. They were 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position for hard-luck loser Zack Littell. The Rays have only scored five runs in his five starts, a league-worst for run support. CLICK HERE
- RAYS ROOKIES SHINE: A side effect of all the injuries in the Tampa Bay Rays' outfield has been the emergence of Kameron Misner, Chandler Simpson and Jake Mangum as productive big league players. CLICK HERE
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Tom Brew is the publisher of ''Tampa Bay Rays on SI'' and has been with the Sports Illustrated platform since 2019. He has worked at some of America's finest newspapers, including the Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He owns eight sites on the "On SI'' network and has written four books.
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