Ryan

Pepiot

It’s possible that Pepiot is activated as soon as Tampa’s next series against the Cubs if everything checks out. Pepiot has been dealing with right hip inflammation since late March, and assuming there are no setbacks, it seems like he’ll be returning sooner rather than later.

Pepiot landed on the injured list earlier this week with right hip inflammation after posting a microscopic 0.90 ERA across 10 innings this spring. The 28-year-old righty could be ready to jump back into Tampa Bay’s rotation at some point in early April, barring any setbacks.

The move is now official. Pepiot’s unexpected season-opening trip to the injured list creates an opportunity for effectively wild poster candidate Joe Boyle to enter Tampa Bay’s rotation. The 28-year-old righty isn’t expected to require an extended absence, but fantasy managers should anticipate him missing at least a few weeks given the nature of the injury. It’s unlikely the Rays will rush him back and risk any setbacks.

Well, this comes out of nowhere. Pepiot threw five shutout innings in his last start and just posted a 0.90 ERA in spring training. The Rays have suggested they don’t expect Pepiot to be out long, which means Joe Boyle will begin the season in the Rays’ rotation and start game two against the Cardinals. Ian Seymour will likely serve as his piggyback if Boyle is unable to go deep into games due to command issues.

It’s relatively easy to envision Pepiot benefitting tremendously from relocating to pitcher-friendly Tropicana Field after spending last year in a minor league ballpark. The 28-year-old righty has put together an excellent spring, compiling a microscopic 0.90 ERA despite a 7/9 K/BB ratio across 10 innings.

Pepiot’s velocity is still down 1-2 mph and he threw just 28 of his 57 pitches for strikes today, but it didn’t hurt him against the Orioles. While he’s yet to allow an earned run in five innings this spring, he’s not exactly helping his stock, which was up a bit with the Rays returning to Tropicana Field this season.

Pepiot walked two in a row to open the second and then gave up an RBI single, but the run was declared unearned because the runner from second had advanced to third on a passed ball. Pepiot averaged 93.5 mph with his fastball today, down from 95.2 mph last year. That might be something to watch if it lingers into a middle of March.

Pepiot was solid in his second season in Tampa Bay, posting a 3.86 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 167/61 K/BB ratio across 167 2/3 innings over 31 starts. He does struggle with home runs, so playing his home games in a minor league ballpark wasn’t a great fit, but Pepiot should be a solid middle-round pick in fantasy leagues in 2026.

Pepiot was followed by lefty Ian Seymour, who was charged with three runs over four innings to close out the contest. It’s unclear whether either will make another appearance this season, but Rays manager Kevin Cash indicated that Seymour would make another appearance later this week. Pepiot is likely done since he’s been dealing with some fatigue lately. He closes the year with a pedestrian 3.86 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 167/61 K/BB ratio across 167 2/3 innings over 31 starts.

With nothing left to play for the Rays are going to re-shuffle their rotation with Seymour operating in a shorter relief stint at some point over the next couple days before making one final start later this week. The 25-year-old southpaw looked sharp last Wednesday against the Blue Jays when he tossed a seven-inning gem against the Blue Jays. It’ll be Ryan Pepiot taking the ball on Tuesday night against the Orioles in his place.