BOSTON—The Rays made the only really logical move available to them to clear a rotation spot for Scott Kazmir, telling Jason Hammel today he is headed to the bullpen.

It is a bullpen that suddenly needs a bit of help, with Gary Glover going on the DL today (see previous post) and some disturbing news on Al Reyes. Not only is he not ready to come back from the DL this weekend as expected, the Rays plan to send him for an MRI on his shoulder and don’t expect him back in the near future, according to Joe Maddon.

Hammel was 2-2 with a 4.88 ERA in five starts, walking 12 and striking out 15 in 27 2/3 innings. His last start was his worst, as he allowed 10 base-runners in 2 2/3 innings Tuesday at Baltimore.

“I’m disappointed,” said Hammel, “but it’s my job to help the team, and if this is the right move for the team I’ll gladly do it.”

Maddon said this isn’t a situation where the other starters need to worry about looking over their shoulders and wondering if a couple of bad starts might get them bumped out of the rotation in favor of Hammel. This is the way the Rays are going, and Hammel probably won’t get a chance to move back into the rotation unless someone gets hurt or completely goes in the tank.

Hammel has 10 career big-league appearances as a reliever, posting a 6.11 ERA. His career ERA in 28 starts is 6.41.

“I’m happy to still be a part of the team—that’s the way I look at it,” said Hammel. “I wasn’t ever really afraid of the move, but I saw it coming.”

In other news, Justin Ruggiano isn’t here yet but should be here for the game. His stay won’t last long, though. He’ll only be here today and tomorrow before going down Sunday to make room for Kazmir.

B.J. Upton, by the way, said his shoulder feels “great” and it sounds like he probably will be back in the lineup tomorrow.

Updating again, 5:35 p.m.: The Rays’ batting practice ended after about 5 or 10 minutes as showers rolled in over Fenway Park. The tarp is being put on the field. Looking at the radar, this seems like the back end of a system, but who knows. I’ll keep you posted…

Updating, 7 p.m.: The rain has shown no signs of letting up and an announcement has been made that the weather is expected to remain this way at least through 8:00. So, hang tight…

Updating, 8:15 p.m.: Well, it seems to be raining harder now. There was word a few minutes ago that there might be a small window—there’s always a window!—later on, perhaps around 9, but no one seemed sure about it. If things haven’t cleared up by then, though, it’ll be time to think about calling it a night. For the record, the teams share an off day Sept. 11, currently slated to be a day off for the Rays between Boston and New York.

Updating, 8:30 p.m.: And they just announced the best-case scenario has the game starting around 9:30, but again, we shall see…

Updating, 8:55 p.m.: The tarp is being rolled up and the infield prepared, with the first pitch scheduled for 9:30.