New Canaan native Curt Casali, who has been catching for the Tampa Bay Rays since July, was sent down to the Class A Charlotte Stone Crabs on Tuesday, Aug. 26, after the Rays reactivated veteran catcher Ryan Hanigan.
Casali, who hit .169 in 59 at bats in the Majors, is expected to be called back up to Tampa when Major League rosters expand from 25 to 40 players on Monday, Sept. 1. Hanigan has been out since July 8 due to an oblique strain. He played in three rehab games for Charlotte.
While Casali came to the Rays via the Triple-A Durham Bulls, he was sent down to the lower minor leagues to expedite his return to the majors, according to TampaBay.com. A player demoted to the minor leagues typically has to wait 10 days before he can be brought back up to the Majors. But that rule does not apply if a minor league team’s season ends.
Charlotte’s season ends on Sunday, Aug. 31.
Casali went 2-for-5 and scored a run during the Ray’s 8-0 shutout of the Blue Jays last Friday in Toronto. He has 10 hits, five walks, eight runs and two RBI.
Before his Major League call-up, Casali split time at Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham this season, with a combined batting average of .261 (59-for-226) in 68 games. That included 15 doubles, four home runs, 18 runs, and 28 RBI.
For Casali, the time in the Big Leagues has been a dream come true, he told the Advertiser in July.
“It has been everything I had hoped it would be and more,” he said. “I was definitely emotional when I first heard the news.”
Casali’s play has earned praise from many in the Tampa Bay organization, including manager Joe Maddon and pitcher Alex Cobb, who started on the mound in Casali’s first Major League game.
“Curt was unbelievable,” Cobb told the Tampa Bay Times. “His job behind the plate, working with me before the game, it was almost like cramming for an exam, trying to get to know me as quick as possible, and it was fantastic. You could tell as the course of the game went on, we were just having this chemistry where he was knowing what pitches I wanted to throw beforehand. The job he does framing pitches and really getting that low strike is tremendous.”
Tampa Bay’s’ Curt Casali, left, Ben Zobrist, center, and Desmond Jennings, right, score on a bases-loaded double by Evan Longoria in the third inning of the Rays’ 6-2 win over the Twins in Minnesota on Friday. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)