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Pitching core thins more without Rupe

By MARC TOPKIN

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 8, 2000

CLEVELAND -- Too bad TV analyst Joe Magrane is leaving for Australia this weekend. The Devil Rays could have used him on the mound.

As if their pitching staff wasn't battered enough, Ryan Rupe's condition causes further complications.

Because Rupe had to leave Wednesday's game early, the Rays had to use Travis Harper, who had been scheduled to start tonight. With Harper unavailable, the Rays will start Cory Lidle, who finished serving his three-game suspension Thursday and was supposed to bolster the bullpen.

And with Lidle in the rotation, the Rays likely will have to keep Dave Eiland and Dan Wheeler in the bullpen throughout the weekend, making it unclear who will start Monday at Oakland, though Harper would seem a likely possibility.

"I'm not sure yet," manager Larry Rothschild said. "I don't even know. First I have to see what's going on with Ryan and how we use the bullpen and then we'll see."

Lidle made seven straight starts during a mid-season stretch but has been used exclusively in relief the past month. He sat out the past three nights for his role in the Aug. 29 game with Boston.

"He'll be rested," Rothschild said. "He threw a lot of pitches his last couple times out so he'll be ready to go."

HUFF DADDY: Winning the American League's rookie of the year award would of course be better, but Aubrey Huff will take the top newcomer honors he was accorded Thursday by the Triple-A International League.

Huff, who was promoted to the big leagues Aug. 1, was also named to the IL post-season All-Star team, along with Durham teammates Ozzie Timmons and Ryan Jackson.

"It's a great honor," Huff said. "Going to Triple A after a Double-A season, I just wanted to hit around .300 and stay consistent all year and I did that."

Huff hit .308 with 20 homers and 76 RBI in 108 games for the Bulls. He finished fifth in the league in hitting, fourth in doubles (36) and tied for first in slugging percentage (.556) despite missing the final month of the minor-league season.

Timmons, an outfielder from Brandon, hit .300 with 29 homers and a league-high 104 RBI and 100 runs. Jackson, a first baseman from Sarasota, hit .311 with 38 doubles, 18 homers and 85 RBI.

With Vinny Castilla back at third base, Huff's playing time apparently will be limited over the final month. The good news is that he should retain his rookie eligibility next season, at least creating the possibility of winning back-to-back awards.

"Let's hope so," Huff said. "That would be really nice."

MINOR MATTERS: Durham lost its opening game of the IL playoffs on Wednesday, falling 6-3 to Indianapolis. Stevenson Agosto took the loss in relief of Cedrick Bowers. Game 2 in the best-of-five series was Thursday. ... Three of the Rays' Olympians, Pat Borders, Brent Abernathy and Bobby Seay, played in the U.S. team's opening exhibition game against Italy. Abernathy had one hit, Borders was 0-for-3 and Seay pitched a hitless eighth inning in the 11-2 win.

IDLE TIME: Thursday's game was the fourth Rothschild has missed because of suspensions this season, but repetition hasn't made it any easier. "It stinks," Rothschild said. "If you manage a team, you want to manage a team; you don't want to watch. Whether you win or lose, you want to be out there with them, so this is not fun. It's something I have to get through."

RAYS BITS: Florida State Negro League All-Stars from St. Petersburg and Tampa will square off at 10 a.m. Saturday at Tropicana Field. Admission is free and Gate 5 will be open. ... No dates have been set for Gerald Williams, Eiland and Tony Fiore to appeal their suspensions. ... Steve Cox went into play Thursday second among American League rookies with a .295 batting average. With 10 homers, Cox is two shy of Bubba Trammell's 1998 team rookie record.

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