The Royals recalled Rave from Triple-A Omaha on Thursday.
Rave is absorbed the roster spot vacated by the injured Kyle Isbel (hamstring). He will mostly likely operate in a reserve-outfielder role down the stretch for the Royals.
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Royals' John Rave: Sent back to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Royals optioned Rave to Triple-A Omaha on Monday.
Rave owns a middling .199/.286/.324 slash line over 156 plate appearances on the season and had been held out of the lineup in both of the Royals' last two matchups versus right-handed starting pitchers, so his demotion doesn't come as a major surprise. He'll cede his spot on the active roster to another left-handed hitter in Michael Massey (wrist), who was reinstated from the 10-day injured list.
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Royals' John Rave: Losing out on playing time
Rotowire
Rave is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tigers.
Rave will hit the bench for a second straight game. His playing time will get squeezed further when Jac Caglianone (hamstring) returns from the injured list, likely during the upcoming week. Rave has gone hitless over his last four games and is batting just .199 over 156 plate appearances on the season.
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Royals' John Rave: Smacks solo homer as pinch hitter
Rotowire
Rave went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and an additional run scored during the Royals' 6-2 win over the White Sox on Saturday.
Rave was brought in for the top of the second inning after Vinnie Pasquantino was removed from Saturday's game due to an illness. Rave made the most of his opportunity, taking Sean Burke deep to right-center field for a solo home run in the third, with the former crossing home plate for a second time in the fifth. It was Rave's first appearance since Wednesday, but the lefty hitter could be in the lineup for Sunday's series finale due to the White Sox sending right-hander Davis Martin to the mound.
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Royals' John Rave: Heading to bench Monday
Rotowire
Rave is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Nationals.
The Nationals are sending right-hander Cade Cavalli to the hill for the series opener, but the left-handed-hitting Rave will hit the bench, despite having the platoon advantage in his favor. Rave had started in seven of the Royals' previous eight games, going 6-for-21 (.286 average) with one double, one stolen base, two runs and a 1:7 BB:K during that stretch. He appears to have a grasp on a near-everyday role at the moment, though he'll likely see his playing time take a significant hit once Jac Caglianone (hamstring) is cleared to return from the injured list.
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Royals' John Rave: Starting against righty again
Rotowire
Rave will start in left field and bat eighth in Monday's game against the Red Sox.
Though he's gone just 3-for-26 at the plate since slugging two home runs in a July 18 contest, Rave will remain in the starting nine for a third straight game against a right-handed starting pitcher (Brayan Bello). Until the Royals get Jac Caglianone (hamstring) back from the injured list, Rave looks like he'll be part of an all-lefty outfield featuring some combination of Mike Yastrzemski, Kyle Isbel or Adam Frazier when Kansas City opposes right-handed pitching. The righty-hitting Randal Grichuk, meanwhile, looks as though he might have to settle for a short-side platoon role.
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Royals' John Rave: Knocks third homer Monday
Rotowire
Rave went 2-for-4 with a home run, three total runs and two total RBI in Monday's 12-4 victory over the Cubs.
Rave's long ball was a 404-foot solo shot in the seventh inning, and he tacked on an RBI single in the eighth. The 27-year-old didn't go deep in any of his 35 contests prior to the All-Star break, but he's looked like a different hitter to begin the second half, going 4-for-10 with three home runs and six RBI through four games. Rave's power stroke isn't entirely out of nowhere -- he knocked 21 home runs over 132 contests with Triple-A Omaha last year and went deep nine times in 43 games with Omaha this season prior to getting called up in late May.
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Royals' John Rave: Heading to bench Thursday
Rotowire
Rave is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers.
Rave had started in both of the Royals' previous two matchups with right-handed pitching, but his playing time could become more scarce moving forward while he's struggled to get going at the plate. Since getting called up from Triple-A Omaha on May 26, Rave is slashing .200/.242/.267 with a 31.4 percent strikeout rate over 35 plate appearances.
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Royals' John Rave: Losing playing time to Caglianone
Rotowire
Rave is out of the lineup for the first game of Thursday's doubleheader versus the Cardinals.
After getting called up from Triple-A Omaha on May 26, Rave started in right field in five of the Royals' ensuing seven games but went just 3-for-15 with a double and a walk. With the Royals summoning another left-handed-hitting corner outfielder in top prospect Jac Caglianone from Omaha earlier this week, Rave's window for regular playing time against right-handed pitching appears to have closed.
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Royals' John Rave: Late add to lineup
Rotowire
Rave is now batting eighth and playing right field for Wednesday's game against the Reds.
Rave was initially scheduled to have the night off, but he's been pushed into the starting lineup after Michael Massey (ankle) was scratched. Rave hasn't logged a hit in eight plate appearances since being called up Monday.
