Chris Archer‘s time on the mound may be over, but his time in baseball is certainly not, as the former Tampa Bay Rays pitcher has reportedly been hired as a special assistant for baseball operations by the Los Angeles Dodgers. The report comes from Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Archer, originally drafted by the then-Indians in 2006, was the Chicago Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2010 when acquired for the first time by Tampa Bay in January of 2011 int he deal that sent Matt Garza to the Windy City. He made his big-league debut for the Rays on June 20, 2012, and finished third to teammate Wil Myers in Rookie of the Year voting the following season. He remained in the Rays rotation until he was traded at the deadline in 2018 to the Pirates for pitcher Tyler Glasnow, outfielder Austin Meadows, and a player to named later (who turned out to be pitcher Shane Baz).
Archer returned to the Rays in 2021 on a one-year deal, but was limited to just 19 1/3 innings of work over six appearances dealing with first a forearm and later a hip injury. He signed a one-year deal with the Twins for 2022, making 25 starts, but had his option for 2023 declined.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
