Rays Place Key Reliever on Injured List With Lower Back Spasms

The Tampa Bay Rays could be changing their deadline plans with a relief pitcher heading to the IL.

Mar 30, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; A detailed view of the Tampa Bay Rays hat at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Tampa Bay Rays have a few needs on their roster that the front office will look to address ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

Unfortunately, another item may have been added to the wish list. As shared by Rays Communications on X, the team has placed right-handed relief pitcher Cole Sulser on the 15-day injured list because of lower back spasms.

The move is being made retroactively to July 26, which means he will be sidelined through at least Aug. 10. In a corresponding move, the Rays have recalled right-handed pitcher Chris Roycroft from Triple-A Durham.

Most recently, Roycroft pitched three innings for Tampa Bay on July 24 against the Cleveland Guardians, earning the save. He has worked mostly in mop-up duty with the Rays, throwing multiple innings in five out of his six outings with the club, and the final score of all six games being by at least four.

Rays place Cole Sulser on injured list

Jun 30, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Cole Sulser (71) pitches during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Roycroft has a 5.54 ERA across 13 innings of work with Tampa Bay after recording a 15.19 ERA in seven appearances and 5.1 innings with the St. Louis Cardinals before they designated him for assignment.

He will now get another chance to prove himself with the Rays as part of their middle relief staff. It will be interesting to see who replaces Sulser, who has been throwing the ball well in July.

While his season-long stats won’t blow anyone away with a 4.86 ERA in 46.1 innings pitched, Sulser was great the last few weeks. In July, he has a 3.09 ERA across 11 outings and 11.2 innings with 13 strikeouts.

Opponents haven’t been able to figure him out, producing a .167/.205/.286 slash line in 44 plate appearances, to go along with a tOPS+ of 32 and sOPS+ of 34, per Baseball Reference.

The Tampa Bay Rays have placed RHP Cole Sulser (lower back spasms) on the 15-day IL (retro July 26) and recalled RHP Chris Roycroft from Triple-A Durham.

— Rays Communications (@RaysPR) July 29, 2026

With him sidelined, manager Kevin Cash is going to need other players to step up. Craig Kimbrel has been throwing the ball well since being picked up, and Steven Matz is back in the mix after missing over a month because of injury.

Eventually, Manuel Rodriguez and Steven Wilson are expected to rejoin the bullpen as well. Neither has made their Big League debut yet in 2026, recovering from injuries.

With Sulser sidelined for at least two weeks, and likely a little longer than that, the front office could also look outside the organization for bullpen help. A relief pitcher was pretty low on the team’s priority list, compared to other needs, but that could change now.