Manager Lou Piniella says he would put Blum in the Devil Rays lineup more if he were swinging a hot bat.
But Blum says it's hard to get hot when you're not in the lineup very much.
When Blum started Friday against the White Sox, it was just the second time this season he was in the lineup for back-to-back games. After going 1-for-4, his average was .130.
"It's tough to get hot when you have no idea when you're going to be in there and stuff like that. This game is about consistency and finding that groove, finding that rhythm," Blum said. "Getting three or four at-bats once a week is going to be tough, but that's the situation I'm in right now and that's the situation I've got to battle out of."
The Rays acquired Blum from Houston (for reliever Brandon Backe) expecting him to be the regular third baseman. But the adjustment to a new team in a new league, and some changes to his swing, have made for a difficult adjustment. And with a hefty (by Rays standards) salary of $1.5-million, he has also had to deal with the uncertainty of trade rumors.
"It's been tough, to say the least," Blum said. "Slowly but surely I'm trying to find my swing and get in a groove, but I've got to take advantage of every opportunity I get. ... I haven't played as well as I would like to, but there's always going to be opportunities out there."
HELPING HAND: Minor-league hitting coordinator Steve Henderson joined the team Friday but doesn't plan major changes as he fills in for Lee Elia, who is recovering from surgery to remove his gall bladder.
"I'm just going to continue to do what Lee was working on," Henderson said. "I know almost all the guys. Most of them came up through the organization, and some I knew before."
Henderson spoke Friday with Elia, who hopes to rejoin the team when it returns home next Friday, and with Piniella.
"Whatever Lee wants me to do, whatever Lou wants me to do, I'm just here to help out," Henderson said.
Henderson was the major-league hitting coach during the 1998 inaugural season, then was moved to the minor-league post.
HALF-DAY OF REST: Rocco Baldelli wasn't in the lineup for the first time, with Carl Crawford moving to centerfield and Robert Fick making his first start in left. Baldelli came in as a pinch-runner for Fick in the sixth and took over in center, with Crawford going back to left, where he made a spectacular running and diving catch in the seventh.
DOUGIE FRESH: A couple weeks later than he hoped, Doug Waechter will make his Rays debut this afternoon.
Waechter essentially earned a spot in the rotation during spring training but was sent to Triple A in a roster shuffle just before the March 30 opener in Japan, then developed a blister on his right middle finger.
He made only two starts at Triple A and struggled badly in his last one, allowing seven runs (including three home runs) in 32/3 innings, but the minor-league coaches said he was ready to move up and the major-league coaches needed him.
"It didn't hurt Doug to go down and get a few starts down in Triple A," Piniella said. "I was hoping he pitched a little more than the seven innings."
Waechter, 23, was impressive at the end of last season, and Piniella plans to give him a chance to prove himself.
"We're going to let him pitch," Piniella said. "We'll let him develop here with us."
The Rays will have to make a roster move to add Waechter, with reliever Jorge Sosa most likely to be sent down.
NO BITES: Piniella said the Rays have not gotten any calls from teams interested in signing Fred McGriff, who remains on a minor-league contract. "It's a shame," Piniella said.
MISCELLANY: The Sox were 0-for-11 with men in scoring position. ... The Rays won't see Pedro Martinez in Boston next week, but they won't have it easy, facing Tim Wakefield, Curt Schilling and Derek Lowe. ... The Rays will start Paul Abbott, Victor Zambrano and Damian Moss, with Waechter facing Oakland at home Friday. ... After hitting five homers in 11 games at Triple-A Durham, Jonny Gomes went on the disabled list with a groin injury.
