Rays Reassign Four Pitchers to Minor League Camp

The Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday afternoon announced they have reassigned four pitchers to minor league camp, including 2024 Bulls pitchers Logan Workman and Alfredo Zarraga. Two other hurlers, lefty Keyshaw Askew and righty Austin Vernon, could also potentially pitch in Durham at some point this year.

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Workman combined for an 11-6 record and 2.96 ERA (146.0 IP) with 138 strikeouts and 44 walks in 29 appearances (28 starts) between Double-A Montgomery and Durham last season. He paced all Tampa Bay Rays minor league pitchers in victories, in addition to ranking tied for fifth in strikeouts and sixth in earned-run average. Across five starts with the Bulls at the tail end of 2024 he posted a 1-1 mark and 4.30 ERA (23.0 IP), adding 26 strikeouts and 11 walks. The 26-year-old was selected by Tampa Bay in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Lee University in Tennessee.

Zarraga, who was named the Tampa Bay Rays' Minor League Reliever of the Year in 2024 by the organization's baseball operations department, also split time between Montgomery and Durham, combining for a 4-5 clip and 3.47 ERA (57.0 IP) with eight saves, adding 76 strikeouts and 32 walks across 46 appearances (one start). Over ten outings (one start) with the Bulls last year he accumulated a 1-1 record and 5.93 ERA (13.2 IP) with 16 strikeouts and ten walks in his first taste at the Triple-A level. The 24-year-old was originally signed by the Chicago Cubs as an international free agent on January 29, 2021 before being acquired by the Rays on November 15, 2022, in exchange for former Bulls infielder/outfielder Miles Mastrobuoni.

Askew spent the entire 2024 campaign with Montgomery, recording a 3-3 mark and 1.40 ERA (64.1 IP) with 66 strikeouts and 39 walks across 51 appearances, with those 51 outings ranking as most among any Tampa Bay Rays minor league pitcher that year. The 25-year-old was originally selected by the New York Mets in the tenth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Clemson University. He was acquired by Tampa Bay in a December 7, 2022 deal from New York in exchange for former Bulls lefty Brooks Raley.

Vernon joined Askew in being a mainstay in the Montgomery Biscuits bullpen last season, posting a 2-3 record and 4.21 ERA (51.1 IP) with nine saves, adding 66 strikeouts and 29 walks over 46 appearances. His nine saves topped all Tampa Bay Rays minor league relievers, while his 46 outings ranked tied for second in that company behind only Askew. Born in Raleigh, the 26-year-old was selected by Tampa Bay in the tenth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of North Carolina Central University in Durham. Prior to his collegiate career, Vernon attended Knightdale High School in Knightdale, NC.

Tampa Bay Rays Major League Camp continues on this month, with the final Spring Training game slated for Tuesday, March 25. The Durham Bulls' roster will very likely not be known until after that date.

After beginning the 2025 campaign with a three-game road series in Norfolk, the Bulls open their home slate at the DBAP on Tuesday, April 1 with a six-game homestand against the defending Triple-A National Champion Sugar Land Space Cowboys, the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35pm.

Tickets for that game and all 75 home games are now available and can be purchased by clicking here.