Mt. Spokane graduate Drew Rasmussen placed on 60-day IL by Rays one day after pitching gem

NEW YORK — The Rays sustained another major injury to their pitching staff Friday, as Drew Rasmussen (a Mt. Spokane high grad) was placed on the 60-day injured list due to a flexor strain, an elbow issue that is typically bad news.

Initial word is that Rasmussen hopes to avoid Tommy John elbow surgery, but his immediate placement on the list indicates it will be an extended absence no matter what. Rasmussen already has had two Tommy John surgeries, in March 2016 and August 2017.

Rasmussen looked fine while delivering a dominant start on Thursday night, throwing seven shutout innings in an 8-2 win over the Yankees.

He allowed only two hits, struck out seven, walked none, and threw 57 of his 76 pitches for strikes. He got 12 swings-and-misses and threw first-pitch strikes to the first 10 hitters and 18 of 23 overall.

After the game, Rays manager Kevin Cash said “it seemed like he had as good of stuff as he had all season. Super efficient. Just willing to throw the ball over the plate consistently. Both breaking balls working. Did a tremendous job.”

The Rays’ initial move to replace Rasmussen on the active roster was to call up right-hander Chris Muller, a reliever who had a 1-0 record and 3.71 ERA in 14 games for Triple-A Durham.

With Monday off, the Rays will next need a starter Wednesday against the Mets, though they could juggle things a bit.