Return of Iwamura could be a boost

Akinori Iwamura began a rehab assignment that wasn't supposed to happen Friday night, and in that sense anything the Rays get out of him this season will be a bonus.

When Iwamura went down with a knee injury May 24 in Miami, the immediate prognosis was that he was done for the season - no surprise considering the violence with which his leg buckled on that slide by Chris Coghlan. Yet Iwamura got an unexpected reprieve when team orthopedist Koco Eaton opened up the second baseman's knee intending to reconstruct it and found the injury much less severe than it had initially appeared.

Now that Iwamura appears to be within weeks of returning - likely when rosters expand Sept. 1 or soon thereafter - the Rays have a potential boost coming their way. And Iwamura might, too.

Considering the tough financial decisions that await the Rays this offseason as they attempt to keep their core intact despite steadily increasing salaries, declining Iwamura's $4.25 million option for 2010 would almost seem a given. The Rays could fill the positional hole with any number of players - Ben Zobrist, Willy Aybar, Reid Brignac - for a fraction of the cost, which probably doesn't bode well for Iwamura's future here.

But at least by getting back on the field this season he will be a far more comfortable pickup for whoever employs him next year, be it the Rays or one of the other 29 teams. Iwamura will be 31 next season, but his transition from third base to second has been something of a revelation defensively.

You wonder exactly what you'll get out of Iwamura's bat, as he still strikes out like the power hitter he was in Japan but doesn't pack the same sort of punch in the more spacious ballparks of the U.S. However, Iwamura was in the midst of his best offensive showing since coming to Tampa Bay when he was hurt this season. His batting average (.310) and on-base plus slugging (.784) were on pace to be his best as a Ray, and he was looking better than ever in the field.

The Rays still don't have a good feel for how Iwamura will play once he returns to the lineup, though they have been pleased with his rehab work and say his batting stroke has looked good. They don't know how often he'll be able to play, but they're looking forward to having him active again for a number of reasons.

"Just in my conversations with him, he's really eager to get back because he really wants to help us win and get back to the World Series," said Manager Joe Maddon. "All his motivation is geared in that direction, which I love. It's not about him, or him getting hits or him playing, it's about helping us win, and I really believe that when I talk to him.

"I'm really eager to get him back; I think he can really help us. He definitely can help us defensively, and from watching him swing the bat in BP, he looks really good. I think he can make a significant contribution when he comes back."

Perhaps the most pressing question is how Maddon will fit Iwamura back into the lineup. His injury changed the entire dynamic of the Rays' season by giving Zobrist somewhere to play every day (and helping him reach the All-Star Game, at that), but even without him the Rays have had trouble getting all the starts they would like for Aybar and others.

Asked the other day about potential lineups once Iwamura returns, Maddon made it clear that Zobrist wouldn't end up on the bench regardless of how things shake out.

"Ben's playing," he said.

That could very well mean Zobrist will end up in right field much of the time, the switch-hitter singlehandedly displacing the Gabe Gross-Gabe Kapler platoon. But that's no guarantee, either. Iwamura will have to perform to keep a regular starting spot, but at least he'll have a shot to do so.

Who knows? It might just pay off in a big way for everybody involved.