Beeks, who's competing for one of the "bulk reliever" roles in the Rays' bullpen, has caught manager Kevin Cash's eye with improved velocity in recent outings, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports. "He continues to impress," Cash said. "That long at-bat [on Friday], I don't know if he's capable of doing that last year. He just kept throwing strike after strike. Really encouraged."
Beeks' unsightly spring line -- one that includes an 8.31 ERA -- doesn't tell the whole story regarding the 25-year-old's progress toward a potential Opening Day roster spot. The southpaw, who was acquired in the Nathan Eovaldi trade with the Red Sox last July, made some tweaks to his delivery earlier this spring, which included shortening up his back arm during his motion. That's led to an uptick in velocity with his fastball, which is up as high as 94 mph after averaging 91.8 mph last season. In conjunction with pitching coach Kyle Snyder, Beeks is also working on adding depth to his slider, with the goal of making it a viable complement to an arsenal that already includes a fastball, curve and changeup.