Rays Select Kenny Piper

The Rays selected catcher Kenny Piper onto the major league roster on Monday evening. He’s in the lineup tonight at Coors Field, batting eighth against Michael Lorenzen for his big league debut. Tampa Bay also designated right-hander Chase Solesky as the necessary 40-man roster move when they finalized their trade for Tyler Wells from Baltimore.

It’s probably a one-off appearance for Piper, a 28-year-old making the jump directly from Double-A. Tampa Bay traded for Liam Hicks this afternoon. He hasn’t reported yet. They followed that up by trading away backup catcher Hunter Feduccia, whom they flipped back to the Dodgers. Hicks will take the starting catching role while nudging Nick Fortes into the backup spot.

Tampa Bay needed someone to bridge the gap tonight in Colorado. Piper gets the call as a reward for his solid season at Double-A Montgomery. The Columbia product is hitting .253/.358/.498 with 11 homers and stolen bases apiece over 266 plate appearances. He’s a former 18th-round pick who signed for $25K. Piper gets to the majors after six seasons and nearly 400 minor league games. Even if it’s a one-day stint, he’s etched into an MLB box score and will collect the prorated $780K big league salary for a night.

Solesky, also 28, made his MLB debut on May 18 against Baltimore. He went three innings and allowed two runs while recording four strikeouts. The sinkerballer has otherwise spent the season with Triple-A Durham, where he carries a 6.79 ERA over 54 1/3 innings. He’ll go on waivers this week and seems likely to clear and stick around in a non-roster capacity.