Newz Forum: BASEBALL: McGriff re-joins Devil Ray's

St. Petersburg The Tampa Bay Devil Rays Friday selected first baseman Fred McGriff from Triple-A Durham. To make room for McGriff, the Devil Rays optioned outfielder Jonny Gomes to Durham. Gomes went just 1-for-14 in five games with Tampa Bay.

The 40-year-old McGriff signed a minor league contract with Tampa Bay during spring training, but did not join the Durham Bulls until May 20 after working out at home. He played in six games with Durham and batted .250 with a homer and four RBI.

McGriff, who has 491 career home runs, currently ranks 22nd on the all-time home run list (fifth among actives) and is one behind Ken Griffey Jr. He also is 11th among left-handed hitters and fourth among first baseman on the all-time home run list.

The Tampa native was with the Devil Rays for their inaugural season in 1998 and remained with the club until being dealt to the Chicago Cubs at the trade deadline in 2001.

He holds Tampa Bay franchise records in eight offensive categories, including batting average (.295), home runs (97), runs batted in (352) and hits (590).

McGriff, who is a five-time All-Star, has a .285 lifetime average and is third among active players in RBI (1,543).

The 18-year veteran, who also had stints with San Diego and Atlanta, endured an injury-plagued season last year with the Los Angeles Dodgers, hitting 13 homers with 40 RBI in just 86 games.