Mesa is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Nationals.
The left-handed hitter will hit the bench for the second time in the series, as the Nationals send southpaw Andrew Alvarez to the hill Sunday. Mesa could struggle to find consistent playing time versus righties as well, after the Rays brought Jonny DeLuca back from the injured list Friday. Despite logging just nine of his 55 plate appearances against same-handed pitching since his May 24 call-up from Triple-A Durham, Mesa is slashing a meager .174/.296/.304 with two home runs, sevens runs and five RBI.
... See More... See Less
Rays' Victor Mesa: On bench versus lefty
Rotowire
Mesa is not the in the starting lineup for Tuesday's contest versus the Dodgers, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Mesa will take a seat as the Rays face left-hander Justin Wrobleski on the mound for Los Angeles. Austin Slater will handle right field, batting second against the Dodgers.
... See More... See Less
Rays' Victor Mesa: On bench against southpaw
Rotowire
Mesa is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Red Sox, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.
With southpaw Connelly Early on the bump for the Red Sox, the left-handed-hitting Mesa will retreat to the bench. While the Rays faced right-handed starters in each of the last seven games, Mesa was included in the lineup for six of those contests and went 3-for-22 (.136 average) with a 3:8 BB:K, two runs and one RBI during that time.
... See More... See Less
Rays' Victor Mesa: On bench Wednesday
Rotowire
Mesa is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Mesa will head to the bench after he went 2-for-8 with a home run and a walk over the first two games of the series in Baltimore. While Ryan Vilade will get the nod in right field Wednesday against Orioles righty Trey Gibson, the left-handed-hitting Mesa is the better bet to see the bulk of the starts versus righties while he's up with the big club.
... See More... See Less
Rays' Victor Mesa: Getting start versus righty
Rotowire
Mesa will start in right field and bat seventh in Monday's game versus the Orioles.
With Jonny DeLuca (hamstring) likely sidelined until after the All-star break, Mesa could get some run in right field against right-handed pitching. The 24-year-old has slashed .329/.420/.543 with two home runs and one stolen base over 18 contests at Triple-A Durham this season.
