Rays Grant Chris Bootcheck His Release

The Rays have granted right-hander Chris Bootcheck his release from Triple-A Durham, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.  Topkin reported yesterday that Bootcheck was expected to exercise his July 1st opt-out. Bootcheck, 32, signed a minor league deal with Tampa Bay in February.  The right-hander hasn't appeared in the majors since 2009 when he was with the Pirates.  In six major league seasons, the veteran owns a 6.54 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9.