St. Petersburg, Fla. – Lefty reliever Gregory Soto sauntered out to the field several hours before the game Saturday and had a leisurely game of catch and long toss with Kyle Funkhouser. The only unusual part of that scene was the presence of head athletic trainer Doug Teter.
But by all accounts, Soto escaped serious injury after he took a liner between his ring finger and pinky on his pitching hand Friday, a drive that left Manuel Margot’s bat at 99.9 mph and set in motion a three-run rally and the Rays’ dramatic 7-4, 10-inning win.