On Aug. 4, the Rays did something for only the third time since the departure of Andrew Friedman — promote a player above Class A-Advanced Charlotte in the season after he was drafted.
That player was Shane McClanahan. Joe Ryan actually received the same promotion nine days later, and Michael Plassmeyer was a September addition to Durham’s staff.
The first two were pitchers Kyle Bird and Brandon Lawson. They both skipped Montgomery — and Bird actually skipped Charlotte — to help out Durham at the end of its season. The following season, both players returned to lower levels to continue their development.