The Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday reinstated catcher Francisco Mejia from the 10-day injured list and designated him for assignment.
Mejia, who had sprained his left MCL, completed a six-game rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Durham on Sunday. He was one of the Rays’ two main catchers over the past three seasons.
The team’s two remaining catchers on the roster were Christian Bethancourt and Rene Pinto.
Mejia, 27, batted .227 with five home runs and 19 RBIs in 150 at-bats over 50 games this season. In three seasons with Tampa Bay, he hit .245 with 17 homers and 85 RBIs in 227 games.
He made his major league debut in 2017 and has played for Cleveland (2017-18), San Diego (2018-20) and Tampa Bay. The Padres traded Mejia on Dec. 29, 2020, to the Rays along with minor league right-handers Luis Patino and Cole Wilcox and catcher Blake Hunt for left-hander Blake Snell.
–Field Level Media