Just a couple of years ago, Shane McClanahan was making his big-league debut in the wun up to the World Series. This year, he will get the baseball to begin the regular season.
Rays manager Kevin Cash announced on Tuesday that the 24-year-old lefty will get the start on April 8 when Tampa Bay hosts the Baltimore Orioles at Tropicana Field.
McClanahan made 25 starts in his first regular season, amassing a 10-6 record and a 3.43 earned run average, and in two postseason appearances, went 1-0 with a 7.94 ERA.
Corey Kluber, Drew Rasmussen, Luis Patino, and Ryan Yarbrough are expected to round out the rotation, though Cash hasn’t set their order.
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.
