Rays' Arozarena grounds out as pinch hitter after he was scratched with right hamstring tightness
Tampa Bay Rays' Randy Arozarena is high-fived in the dugout after scoring on a double hit by Isaac Paredes during the first inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Wednesday, June 5, 2024, in Miami. Credit: AP/Lynne Sladky
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Tampa Bay Rays left fielder Randy Arozarena grounded out as a pinch hitter Tuesday night against the Chicago Cubs after he was scratched because of right hamstring tightness.
Batting for Taylor Walls with runners on first and second in the seventh inning, Arozarena bounced to second baseman Nico Hoerner.
Arozarena was replaced in the starting lineup by Jonny DeLuca. He did not stay in game defensively after his at-bat.
The 29-year-old Arozarena, an AL All-Star last year is hitting .175 with eight homers and 20 RBIs this season. It's the lowest average among MLB qualified batters.
Arozarena has shown some signs recently of getting out of his season-long slump, going 8 for 26 (.308) in his previous eight games this month
He hit .254 with 23 homers, 88 RBIs and 22 steals last year.