Former Tampa Bay Rays pitcher tweets he’s joining Red Sox

Former Tampa Bay Rays reliever Ryan Sherriff says he’s joined the Red Sox organization. While the team has yet to confirm anything, he tweeted from his verified account @KingSherriff:

“Glad to be apart of the @RedSox org! Lets get it.”

While his last name is likely to spark a lot of predictable “new Sherriff in town” lines there’s a good possibility that the town may be Worcester.

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Sherriff, a 32-year-old lefthander, has 44 career major league appearances, all out of the bullpen. He’s 3-2 with a 3.65 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. He spent 2017 and 2018 with Cardinals and 2020 and 2021 with the Rays.

The former 28th-round pick from Culver City, California spent all of 2022 in the minors in the Phillies organization and had to be shut down with a shoulder injury after July 29. It’s unclear whether he’ll be healthy at the start of spring training.

Sherriff has been an advocate for mental health since briefly leaving the Rays during the 2021 season. He told MLB.com at the time:

I just think that I just needed a little bit of a break,” Sherriff said. “Going through all the COVID stuff and the isolations and all of that, I just needed some time away to get my life together. I think I’m going to have to deal with this for the rest of my life. But I’m glad that I have a great foundation where to start from. The Rays have been nothing but a great support to me. They have helped me so much throughout this process.”