The Rays have activated infielder Yandy Díaz from the 60-day injured list, per an official announcement on Sunday. In a corresponding roster move, right-handed reliever Cole Sulser has been designated for assignment.
Díaz, 28, has not appeared in a game since mid-July, when he sustained a hairline fracture after fouling a ball off of his left foot. While his path to a full recovery has been long and tedious, he was able to play in an instructional game on Saturday and is expected to factor into the team’s final game of the regular season, as well as their upcoming Wild Card Game playoff against the Athletics.
Prior to the injury, Díaz had been working on some career-best numbers with the Rays. He batted .270/.343/.480 with 14 home runs, 38 RBI, an .823 OPS, and 1.7 fWAR through 344 plate appearances. It’s unclear how well he might perform after missing the last several months of the season, but the Rays evidently have some faith that he’ll be able to contribute in a meaningful way as they gear up for a high-stakes postseason campaign. He’ll play DH and bat leadoff for Game 162 on Sunday, which is scheduled to kick off at 3:07 PM EDT.
