PORT CHARLOTTE — Resting on a shelf near the top of Steven Souza Jr.’s cubicle inside the Rays clubhouse are a couple of new-age baseball tools that seem a bit out of the ordinary for a major league outfielder.
Between the two, the hockey puck is the oddest fit. But it’s the baseball that’s been flattened to the seams on two sides that always grabs the most attention.
“Geltz gave them to me,” Souza said, referring to Rays reliever Steve Geltz. “They’ve really made a difference in my game.”
The part of Souza’s game that the puck and the flat ball have changed most is his throwing.