Jax goes down, and now Tampa Bay is running out of arms to count

Griffin Jax, who has been one of the more reliable pieces of this bullpen all season, was struck by a line drive and is now added to a pitching staff injury list that has grown genuinely difficult to look at. McClanahan, Cleavinger, Rodriguez, Wells, Pepiot, Heasley, and Uceta were already unavailable in some form. That's eight arms, and now Jax makes nine.

The Rays are 95-61 with a magic number of five and seven games left, so the math still works in their favor. But the bullpen depth behind Bryan Baker has thinned to Kevin Kelly and a collection of names — Legumina, Booser — who haven't logged heavy innings at this level. Jax had appeared in 35 games and posted a 3.19 ERA; losing him in the final week is the kind of thing that doesn't show up in the standings until it does.

Martinez and Rasmussen are still standing, and the offense has been good enough lately to cover some sins. But I've been writing versions of this same note since early September, and the list keeps getting longer. Seven games is a short runway. Tampa Bay should get there. The question is what shape the pitching staff is in when October starts.