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By MIKE READLING, JOHN ROMANO
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 19, 2001
ST. PETERSBURG -- The beginning of the Hal McRae era signaled the end of the Travis Harper era, at least for the time being.
One of McRae's first moves as Rays skipper was to send the 24-year-old right-hander to Triple-A Durham and promote pitcher Dan Wheeler. Wheeler is expected to go to the bullpen while reliever Mike Judd takes Harper's position as the No. 5 starter.
The demotion came one night after Harper was rocked by Boston, allowing seven runs (two earned) in two innings, including three home runs, as the Rays lost 10-0. Harper's stats after two starts include 11 runs (six earned) and five home runs in seven innings.
"I need to find some consistency in the way I throw the ball. I have to get back down there and hit my stride," Harper said. "You're never happy about being sent down, but it doesn't matter how you feel. What matters is how you bounce back."
Wheeler was walking to the dugout in Columbus, Ohio, to watch the Bulls take on the Clippers when manager Bill Evers called him back into the clubhouse. From there, it was a quick shower and a change before boarding a plane for St. Petersburg an hour later. He had to leave a message on his parents' answering machine to tell them of his promotion.
"I was kind of surprised because it's so early," said Wheeler, who is back for his third stint with the Rays. He is 1-5 with a 5.70 ERA in 17 major-league games.
After working mostly as a reliever during spring training, Wheeler became a starter at Durham. He was held to four and five innings in his first two starts while he stretched his arm out for longer outings.
Wheeler, who pitched the ninth Wednesday, was 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA, six strikeouts and a walk in nine innings at Durham.
THIS JUDD IN: Judd has been impressive enough in his first three appearances out of the bullpen that he will get his first start Sunday against Baltimore.
Judd, acquired from the Dodgers for $100,000 the final week of spring training, has given up one earned run in 81/3 innings of relief work.
The right-hander made four starts for the Dodgers in 1999 and went 3-1, but he was moved back to the bullpen when top prospect Eric Gagne was called up. Judd spent most of 2000 in the minors.
"A guy goes 3-1, you usually don't demote him to the bullpen, but there were other factors to it, I guess," Judd said. "I'm just happy now to have a chance to pitch."
HE'S HERE (FINALLY): One of the first phone calls McRae made after accepting his new job was to longtime friend and former teammate Lee May at his home in Cincinnati. The goal was to get May out of his house and to St. Petersburg in time to become the Rays' new first-base coach.
"I told him if he got here by 7:15, he had a new job," McRae joked before the game.
May didn't quite make the 7:15 deadline, but he still got the job.
May made his Rays debut during the second inning, settling into the first-base box just in time to see Ben Grieve and Jose Guillen get back-to-back singles and Tampa Bay take a 1-0 lead. He relieved Darren Daulton, who worked the first inning.
STREAK BREAKER: Grieve's single in the second broke an 0-for-16 slump and raised his average to .145. When he scored, it broke a 25-inning team scoring lapse against Boston dating to April 7 at Fenway Park.
THE HITS KEPT COMING: The nine runs the Red Sox scored in the eighth tied a Tampa Bay record for runs allowed in an inning, duplicating Cleveland's second inning April 7, 2000. The eight hits that inning were one short of the record set by Florida in 1999.
ONE-MAN INNING: Boston's Dante Bichette accounted for all three of the Red Sox outs in the eighth, hitting into a double play, then flying out to center.