Tampa Bay starter Wilson Alvarez strained his rib cage during Sunday's game and was placed on the disabled list on Monday. The 32-year-old lefty was kept out of the majors in both 2000 and 2001 due to shoulder problems, so the Devil Rays are being somewhat cautious. Alvarez is expected to recover fully by the time he is eligible to come off the DL.

Delvin James was called up to replace Alvarez on the roster. The 24-year-old James split last season between AA and AAA. He doesn't strike a lot of batters out and still allows too many hits but he has good command and control. James split his AAA time between starting and relieving, and Tampa has yet to decide where they want him long-term.

Paul Wilson has been sidelined with a stiff shoulder and will miss his next start, so James will make his major league debut today. James projects to either a bottom of the rotation starter or good middle reliever. Wilson won't likely miss more than one start, but James will probably stay in the rotation until Alvarez returns.

The Devil Rays were able to activate Russ Johnson from the disabled list on Monday. Johnson strained the plantar fascia tendon in his right foot near the end of Spring Training, or he would have been their starting third baseman to begin the season. Now that he has joined the team, Johnson will replace the struggling Bobby Smith at third base. Tampa kept him on the DL a couple of extra days to insure that he would be healthy when he returns, so they don't expect him to have any additional problems with his injury.

The 28-year-old Smith has never demonstrated good plate discipline in his professional career. He has 7 hits in his first 40 at-bats of the season with 17 strikeouts and only 2 walks. As long as the rest of the team is healthy, he will be used as a utility player for the remainder of the season and likely only start when someone needs a day off. He plays acceptable defense at second, third, and short, and while he does have good power for a reserve, appears incapable of starting every day.

Tampa shouldn't have even given Smith chances at the starting third base job. Aubrey Huff is a much better choice for third than Smith. Huff is three years younger than Smith and has shown good strike zone judgment in the minors. He also has more power upside than Smith though less speed. Huff is certainly a better choice than Jared Sandberg, who has little going for him outside of his pedigree.

Unfortunately, Huff started the season on the DL after a thrown ball hit him in the face and broke his cheekbone during practice on March 29th. He had to have surgery to repair the damage and will miss all of April. The Devil Rays' main problem with Huff is his defense. However they should really be willing to suffer through a few seasons of weak fielding as he's the closest thing they have to a long-term solution at third. While Johnson appears to be a better overall player at the moment, he's in his peak and not likely to grow much beyond where he is right now.

Tampa Bay sent Jason Smith to the minors in order to make room for Johnson on the roster. The 24-year-old infielder, acquired last season from the Cubs with Manny Aybar for Fred McGriff, certainly needs additional minor league experience. His plate discipline is almost non-existent. He does have some speed and power skills, which would both likely stand out more if he weren't striking out in around 30% of his at-bats.

The team also wanted a fresh arm for the bullpen, so they chose to demote Travis Phelps in favor of Tom Martin. The 31-year-old Martin is a left-handed minor league veteran who will assist left-handers Doug Creek and Steve Kent in middle relief.

Tampa Bay probably should have demoted Jesus Colome rather than someone like Phelps who has already experienced mild success in the majors. Colome has significant upside, but he's only had 17 IP in AAA and struggled in the major league pen last season. With more minor league time, he could potentially develop into a solid closer rather quickly.

The Devil Rays have several great young relievers in their system but need to manage their development with more care. Esteban Yan should be a very effective closer, but so could Victor Zambrano, Colome, and Phelps. If they can acquire a quality offensive prospect for Yan, they should definitely be willing to deal him, especially as they would also save over a million dollars in salary. As Colome, Zambrano, and Phelps will likely comprise their right-handed relief corps for the next few years, there's little reason to rush any of them. The organization really has a chance to improve this season with intelligent player supervision, especially since it appears that they are going to be able to add four prospects to their system through their Rule 5 picks. However, there is substantial room for error.