Jeff Keppinger (toe) is slated to begin a minor league rehab assignment Friday with Triple-A Durham.

Keppinger will serve as the DH on Friday before playing in the field on Saturday. It's not clear how long he'll spend on the rehab assignment, but he appears likely to rejoin the Rays by the end of the month.

Jeff Keppinger (toe) resumed baseball activities Wednesday.

"I started jogging, running, doing some activities, hitting, throwing and started doing a little shuffling today, fielding some balls," Keppinger said. "Basically just getting my body back going now." There's currently no timetable for Keppinger's return, but he should be ready before the end of the month if he can avoid setbacks.

Rays manager Joe Maddon said Jeff Keppinger (toe) will be ready to take batting practice "in a couple days."

Keppinger has already missed three weeks with a broken big right toe but has finally ditched his walking boot. He'll likely require a rehab assignment but should be back before the end of the month.

Jeff Keppinger is currently nursing a foot injury.

It's not clear at this point how he suffered the ailment or how long he'll be out. Keppinger is batting .295/.330/.398 with two homers this season.

Rays activated INF Jeff Keppinger from the restricted list.

Keppinger was placed on the restricted list earlier this week in order to attend to his divorce case. The 32-year-old is back in the starting lineup as the DH Thursday against the Yankees.

Jeff Keppinger went 2-for-2 with a two-run homer and a walk to lead the Rays to a 4-3 win over the Mariners on Thursday.

The Rays could have moved Sean Rodriguez to third base and gone with Reid Brignac at shortstop with Evan Longoria out, but the plan for now is to mix-and-match Keppinger, Will Rhymes and Elliot Johnson. Keppinger is the best hitter of the group, and since he's currently riding a 7-for-8 streak at the plate, we'll likely be seeing a lot more of him in the near future.

Facing another starting left-hander, Jeff Keppinger returned to the cleanup spot on Thursday, finishing 0-for-5 in a loss to Detroit.

The off night started in the first inning when he harmlessly popped out with no outs and the bases loaded; the Rays failed to score that inning, which turned out to be costly. And trailing 3-2 in the seventh, he lined into a double play with two on and no outs. In all, he left six runners on base.

Jeff Keppinger is in the designated hitter slot and batting cleanup for the Rays in Friday's opener.

Keppinger admitted that he has never batted cleanup before, not even in high school or college. It's a bit of an unusual setup, but manager Joe Maddon has never been afraid to do something unconventional with his lineup, and Keppinger does have an .852 career OPS against left-handed pitching. The Rays are squaring off against CC Sabathia Friday.

Rays signed INF Jeff Keppinger to a one-year, $1.525 million contract.

The deal also includes some incentives. Keppinger, who will turn 32 in April, batted just .277/.300/.377 with six home runs and 35 RBI in 399 plate appearances last season between the Giants and Astros, but he holds an .852 career OPS against left-handed pitchers and offers defensive versatility.

According to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, the Rays have inked a one-year contract with Jeff Keppinger.

No word yet on the financial terms. Keppinger batted just .277/.300/.377 with six home runs and 35 RBI in 399 plate appearances last season between the Giants and Astros, but he holds an .852 career OPS against left-handed pitchers and will likely be utilized correctly (as a part-time middle infielder) by Rays skipper Joe Maddon.

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that Jeff Keppinger is close to an agreement with the Rays.

Topkin says the major league contract should be finalized by the end of this week. Keppinger batted just .277/.300/.377 with six home runs and 35 RBI across 399 plate appearances last season between the Giants and Astros, but he's capable of providing a backup presence all around the Tampa Bay infield and probably won't cost more than $1.5 million on a one-year deal.

According to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, the Rays have expressed interest in free agent Jeff Keppinger.

Keppinger was non-tendered by the Giants in early December after batting just .277/.300/.377 with six home runs and 35 RBI over 399 plate appearances last season between the Giants and Astros. He's found very little interest on the open market and would likely be a bench player in Tampa Bay.

Giants non-tendered INF Jeff Keppinger.

The Giants were mulling over whether to keep Keppinger or Mike Fontenot, but opted to keep the latter due to his versatility. It also helped that he was the far cheaper option. Keppinger, 31, batted .277/.300/.377 with six home runs, 35 RBI and a .677 OPS over 399 plate appearances this past season between San Francisco and Houston. He shouldn't have a problem finding a new home.

The Giants are attempting to trade Jeff Keppinger, Andres Torres and Ramon Ramirez, according to CBS Sports' Danny Knobler.

The Giants intend to keep Jeremy Affeldt, according to Knobler. Torres hit an underwhelming .221/.312/.330 this season after posting an .823 OPS in 2010. Keppinger registered an anemic .618 OPS for the Giants after coming over via trade from the Astros in July. He doesn't make for a bad utility guy, though, as he can be used all over the infield. Ramirez should draw plenty of interest. He posted a 2.62 ERA and 1.16 WHIP for the Giants last year and holds career marks of 3.16 and 1.24, respectively.

Jeff Keppinger went 3-for-4 with a homer, a double and two RBI against the Cubs on Wednesday.

The Giants have scored 13 runs in their last six games and Keppinger has driven in seven of them. Oddly enough, he had just three RBI in his first 30 games with the club.

Jeff Keppinger singled in Mark DeRosa in the bottom of the 10th to give the Giants a 2-1 win over the Astros on Saturday.

Keppinger beat his former team with his lone hit of the night. With the victory, the Giants remained three games back of the Diamondbacks in the NL West.

Jeff Keppinger popped up as a pinch-hitter Friday.

Evidently the wrist is in better shape than we thought. The fact that he was able to pinch hit suggests Keppinger will avoid the DL and should be available to start before long.

Although Jeff Keppinger (wrist) was able to take batting practice Friday, Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News writes that the infielder "just appeared to be waving his bat through the zone."

Baggarly surmised that Keppinger's left wrist "isn't close to 100 percent." Though the Giants are still considering him day-to-day at this point, it sounds like the veteran certainly might wind up on the DL.

Jeff Keppinger (wrist) is out of the Giants' starting lineup for the third straight day Thursday.

Keppinger was advised to rest for a couple days after being diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right wrist. Orlando Cabrera will make the start at second base Thursday while Miguel Tejada plays shortstop.

Giants infielder Jeff Keppinger has been diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right wrist.

Keppinger suffered the injury Wednesday in a collision with Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman. He has been advised by a hand specialist to sit out for a while, for fear that the bruise might eventually lead to a fracture. Keppinger is batting .299/.317/.409 through 67 games played.