Red Sox make roster cuts, swing trade with Rays ahead of Rule 5 deadline

Hours before Tuesday s p m ET deadline to finalize their -man roster for next month s Rule Draft the Red Sox swung a exchange with a division rival and designated first baseman Nathaniel Lowe and right-hander Josh Winckowski for assignment Right-handed reliever Luis Guerrero is going to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Tristan Gray to Boston Guerrero however was no longer on the -man roster after being designated for assignment clearing waivers and being outrighted to the minors earlier this month Thus the Red Sox opened a roster spot for Gray by DFA ing Lowe Winckowski s spot will be given to a top prospect they wish to protect from the Rule likely right-hander David Sandlin Gray is coming off his second stint with the Rays with whom he made his big-league debut in but only has career games under his belt He split the season between the Markins and Athletics Over a career-high games for the Rays this year he batted with a OPS He is a lifetime OPS hitter but has played all four infield positions in the majors and can provide defensive depth It also could mean less work for utility infielders David Hamilton and Nick Sogard Guerrero debuted for the Sox and made nine scoreless appearances to begin his MLB career He continued his scoreless streak through his first three games this year but struggled with command and consistency in his final outings and did not pitch for the big-league squad after June Winckowski has been with the Red Sox since the - offseason when they acquired him as a prospect in the three-team Andrew Benintendi business with the Kansas City Royals and New York Mets and debuted with Boston in He owns a ERA over career games these last four seasons including a strong campaign in which he made appearances and posted a career-best ERA He only made six big-league appearances this year and spent the bulk of the season on the -day injured list with a right flexor strain The Red Sox acquired Lowe from the Washington Nationals at this summer s bargain deadline He is projected to receive approximately million in arbitration this year an unnecessary cost for the Red Sox if fellow first baseman Triston Casas can contribute