Sandberg back to man third

ST. PETERSBURG -- Jared Sandberg figured the phone call Tuesday morning might be worth answering.

"Usually when I get a phone call at 8 o'clock in the morning it's a solicitor," he said. "All of the sudden it's your manager saying you're going to the big leagues."

In Sandberg's case, back to the big leagues.

The Rays recalled him from Triple-A Durham, filling the roster spot vacated by the release of Bobby Smith. Sandberg supplanted Russ Johnson as the starting third baseman.

"We've got to get better offensively and third base is a question mark," general manager Chuck LaMar said. "It might be Jared. It might be Russ. But we can't sit back. ... We need to try to create more offense out of it."

Named the starter after spring training, Johnson missed the first 11 games of the season with an injury and has never gotten on track at the plate.

A utilityman most of his career, Johnson is batting .207 with one homer and eight RBIs.

The Rays sent Sandberg to the minors to work on his offense. He batted .281 with four homers and 21 RBIs in 30 games.

"I went back to what I've been doing earlier in my minor-league career," Sandberg said. "I was just trying to make it as simple as possible: see the ball, hit the ball."

IT'S OVER: Smith, the Rays' sixth pick in the expansion draft, said he is "ready to move on." He is expected to clear waivers at 1 p.m. Monday.

"It's a business," Smith said. "They treated me like a business treats people."

Smith is batting .175 this season with one home run and six RBIs in 17 games. He hit .232 with 21 home runs and 107 RBIs in 257 games with Tampa Bay.

LaMar said Smith struggled with consistency and seemed unwilling to work on cutting down on strikeouts.

"We've given him every opportunity," LaMar said. "It's time for us to move on."

"I just want a chance to play every day," Smith said.

WHAT OF JOHNSON?: The addition of Sandberg may cramp Johnson's style.

Still, Johnson took the high road.

"I want him to do well," he said of Sandberg. "I want him to do what he's supposed to do."

"Russ Johnson is an intricate part of this club," LaMar said. "But he's off to a slow start. Because of what we're doing offensively, we've got to try to get better."

HARPER STRIKES: Travis Harper, who has pitched just 7 1/3 innings, may get a greater role. The right-hander pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings against the Yankees with seven strikeouts, a personal record and a record for Rays relievers.

Harper struck out four in two scoreless innings in his previous outing, April 27 against the Red Sox.

Asked if Harper might get more work or be put into the starting rotation, manager Hal McRae said, "It's something I'll have to think about."

"I've always been a starter," Harper said. "However, I've said since the first day I got up here, I'm ready to pitch in whatever situation they want to put me in."

ALVAREZ THROWS: Pitcher Wilson Alvarez, out since April 15 with a strained right rib cage, threw 45 pitches in a three-inning simulated game. He reported no pain and likely will throw again Friday or Saturday.

ODDS AND ENDS: McRae said slumping Greg Vaughn, who sat out Wednesday's game, also will sit today. ... Ben Grieve was DH after missing three games with a bruised left thumb and a minor infection in his hand. McRae said he will DH again today. ... No one hits better at the Trop than New York's Bernie Williams, who went 2-for-5 to push his average at the park to .440 (40-for-91).

-- KEVIN KELLY, DAMIAN CRISTODERO