The Tampa Bay Rays announced Tuesday that shortstop Taylor Walls has been placed on the 10‑day injured list due to a right hip flexor strain. The move is retroactive to Sunday, giving the team flexibility to address the roster vacancy.
Roster adjustments
To fill the open spot on the 40‑man roster, the Rays recalled veteran infielder Nick Madrigal from Triple‑A Durham. In a corresponding transaction, right‑handed reliever Hunter Bigge was designated for assignment, making room for Madrigal.
Walls last appeared on the field Saturday, going 0‑for‑2 with a walk and delivering his major‑league‑leading 12th sacrifice bunt of the season in a 6‑3, 10‑inning win over the Texas Rangers.
Walls’ performance
At 30 years old, Walls is batting .218 with two home runs and 33 RBIs in 117 games. Defensively, he has committed nine errors in 441 chances for a .980 fielding percentage over 985 2/3 innings, leading the majors with 21 total fielding runs above average. He also boasts 21 steals in 24 attempts.
Over his career, Walls has posted a .199 average with 24 home runs and 169 RBIs in 597 regular‑season games since debuting in 2021.
Madrigal and Bigge background
Nick Madrigal, 29, signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent on June 25. He appeared in 15 games for the Los Angeles Angels this season, hitting .273 (12‑for‑44) with two RBIs. Madrigal’s career line sits at .274 with four homers and 79 RBIs in 300 games across stints with the Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs and the Angels. He was batting .318 with two home runs and 16 RBIs in 47 games for Durham before the call‑up.
Hunter Bigge, 28, posted a 1‑1 record with a 6.98 ERA, 14 walks and 14 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings over 18 relief appearances for Tampa Bay earlier this season. While with Durham, he was 1‑1 with two saves and a 6.14 ERA in 29 1/3 innings across 27 relief outings before being designated.
Additional roster moves
Infielder Oliver Dunn, who was designated for assignment on Saturday, cleared outright waivers on Tuesday and accepted an assignment to Durham. Dunn, 29, was 1‑for‑11 (.091) in nine games for Tampa Bay this season. The Rays originally acquired Dunn from the Chicago White Sox on May 19 in exchange for left‑hander Joe Rock, who was later claimed by the Oakland Athletics.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
