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Rays Are Close To Finalizing Roster

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By MARC LANCASTER

mlancaster@tampatrib.com

Published: April 1, 2009

Updated: 04/01/2009 06:10 am

FORT MYERS - Whether it comes via a trade, a difficult cut or some other creative solution, the Rays' Opening Day roster should be fairly well set by the time they break camp this afternoon.

"We're really close," Manager Joe Maddon said Tuesday after a late-morning meeting with executive vice president Andrew Friedman.

The roster spots that remain to be sorted out are mostly interconnected, which has complicated matters. Team officials said repeatedly that they expected to name a fifth starter by last weekend, but that deadline came and went. The ongoing delay would seem to suggest the Rays hope they can work out a trade involving the competitors, Jason Hammel and Jeff Niemann, and both pitchers' names have been flying in the rumor mill the past few days.

The rotation decision could affect the final bullpen spot, which has been earmarked for a long reliever. Hammel, Niemann and Lance Cormier are the candidates there, and the Rays almost certainly will open the season with a reliever capable of multi-inning stints.

Which leads to another problem: what to do with Jason Isringhausen. The veteran isn't a long man, and the rest of the bullpen spots are spoken for, but Maddon said after meeting with Isringhausen on Tuesday that the Rays "do not want to lose him."

Isringhausen's agent, Dan Horwits, said Tuesday that he had been in talks with Friedman and expected a resolution by today. He added that having the longtime closer open the year in the minors is "not an option." Having him open the season on the disabled list is a possibility, though.

However it all plays out, the picture should be much clearer by the time the Rays leave Port Charlotte today.

Reporter Marc Lancaster can be reached at (813) 259-7227.

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