CHICAGO — With just about two weeks left in the 2025 regular season, Jonny DeLuca’s year is officially over.
The Rays announced DeLuca was headed to the 60-day injured list prior to their 5-4 win vs. the Cubs on Saturday, ending an injury-plagued season for the 27-year-old. In corresponding moves, Tampa Bay selected Garrett Acton’s contract from Triple-A Durham and optioned Eric Orze.
DeLuca went on the 10-day IL on Aug. 8 with a left hamstring strain, which kept him out of game action for nearly three weeks. The Rays then sent him on a rehab assignment with Durham on Aug. 27, where he appeared in nine games, most recently on Tuesday when he started in center field.
In that ninth game, though, DeLuca suffered a setback. He beat out a ground ball to third base in the bottom of the first, and he remained in the game the rest of the half inning. But entering the top of the second, he was replaced in the field.
DeLuca had felt pain in his quad, and according to Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash, imaging ultimately showed an ailment that will prevent him from rejoining the big league club in 2025.
“We knew he wasn’t going to come back this year, because he got his quad pretty good as he was getting close to coming back up here,” Cash added. “[We’ll] see how it goes into the offseason.”
It’s been a tough year for DeLuca, especially considering his solid production when he managed to stay on the field.
In 57 at-bats over 20 games, DeLuca slashed .333/.356/.456. The Rays’ Opening Day center fielder also had just one defensive run saved and one outs above average.
He started the season hot, slashing .435/.480/.522 through April 6, but he went on the shelf two days later with a right shoulder strain. He didn’t return to Tampa’s lineup until July 26, and even then he only played in 11 more games before going on the IL for good.
DeLuca managed to play 107 games for the Rays in 2024, but he didn’t make his season debut that year until May 3 due to a broken hand. He did manage to stay off the IL the rest of ‘24, but the injury bug bit him hard in ‘25.
Now, he’ll have to wait until the start of 2026 to hopefully take the field again.
“It’s been a trying year for Jonny,” Cash said. “You feel for him, because he’s had, whether it was a shoulder or lat early on in the season, then the hamstring and then now the quad that happened in Durham, it’s not a year that you want to draw up. Really, back to back years of frustration from a physical standpoint and avoiding injuries for him.”
Acton has pitched in 43 games (three starts) for Durham, going 5-1 with a 3.64 ERA. He’s struck out 67 hitters in 54 1/3 and limited opponents to a .187 batting average. He initially joined the organization in December 2023, and he’ll get a shot to contribute out of the bullpen.
Acton is from the Chicago area but has never pitched in either of the city’s MLB parks. Cash said he likes to get players into the game in these situations. He pointed to Bob Seymour playing in Wednesday’s game at Rate Field, when it “sounded like he had a whole community sitting above our dugout cheering for him.”
So, if an opportunity arises, Cash will likely look to get Acton on the mound.
“I’ll pitch him to close the game out today,” he quipped.
Pepiot expected to start during homestand
Though Cash didn’t have an update on Ryan Pepiot’s scheduled bullpen Saturday, he’s been encouraged by the right-hander’s progress since being scratched from his Sept. 10 start due to general body fatigue.
This season, Pepiot has set career highs in starts (29) and innings (163). After previously throwing 130 over 26 outings in 2023, the increased workload is part of the progression for a starter at the big league level.
However, the workload has apparently worn on him a bit, and the team elected to hold him out on his start date.
Both Cash and Pepiot felt the 28-year-old would pitch again this season, and that appears to be the case. The Rays are aiming to get him back on the mound when the team heads back for a seven-game homestand.
“We’re going to talk through it,” Cash said. “We’ll slot him in at some point when we get home in the first four games. That’s our hope.”
