Tampa Bay Rays Name Right-Hander as Opening Day Starter

Heading into year two with the organization, Zach Eflin has earned the Opening Day start for the Tampa Bay Rays. They'll take on the Toronto Blue Jays on March 28.

The Tampa Bay Rays have named right-handed pitcher Zach Eflin as their starter for Opening Day on March 28.

Per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times on social media:

Zach Eflin will be #Rays opening day starter vs. #BlueJays on 3/28

Zach Eflin will be #Rays opening day starter vs. #BlueJays on 3/28

— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) March 19, 2024

Eflin gets the Opening Day start for a few different reasons:

1) He had an excellent season in 2023. After signing a multi-year deal with the Rays last offseason, the 29-year-old went 16-8 with a 3.50 ERA. He led the Rays in innings pitched with 177.2 and tied for the American League-lead in wins with the 16. 

2) He's also really the only option at this point. The Rays once-sterling rotation has taken massive hits over the last year with Jeffrey Springs and Shane McClanahan needing to undergo Tommy John surgery, Drew Rasmussen dealing with serious elbow issues and Tyler Glasnow being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers this offseason. Even prospect Taj Bradley is dealing with an injury right now, so the Opening Day choice really came down to Eflin and Aaron Civale.

Eflin is heading into his ninth year in the big leagues with the Philadelphia Phillies and Rays. Lifetime, he's 52-53 with a 4.28 ERA, starting 146 career games.

The Rays won 99 games last season and still figure to be good this season, but with all the pitching injuries - and the Wander Franco saga - it wouldn't be surprising to see them step back in a deeply-talented American League East.

The Blue Jays have not officially named an Opening Day starter to oppose Eflin yet.

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