After a 10-6, come-from-behind win against the Orioles on Friday, the Tampa Bay Rays look for their third consecutive win, as well as a series win, in Baltimore tonight. Tampa Bay has now compiled 33 wins when trailing, which is tied with Boston for most in baseball.
At 66-44 on the season, the Rays enter play 22-games above .500 and 9-and-1 against the Orioles. They also have a 2.5 game lead over the Red Sox in the division.
Ryan Yarbrough got the start against the Orioles on Friday and allowed five runs on nine hits while striking out four across five innings. Yarbrough again kept his walks in check, yet the excellent control he has displayed all season hasn’t been enough of late. And while a .414 BABIP and a few weakly hit balls that resulted in extra bases speak to some bad luck on behalf of the left-hander, Yarbough allowed five hard hits, good for a 26.3% barrel rate — his highest of the season. He has allowed five runs or more in three of his last four starts and owns a 5.51 ERA with a 1.26 WHIP across six starts since the start of July.
The Rays scored the bulk of their runs in the sixth and eighth innings, coming back from a 5-2 deficit.
Down by three in the sixth, the Rays began their comeback against Connor Greene. Kevin Kiermaier walked while Jordan Luplow singled to center, putting runners on the corners. Nelson Cruz followed with a three-run homer to left, his third with Tampa Bay.
The game remained tied until the eighth when the Rays scored five runs against Paul Fry and Dillon Tate.
Mike Zunino dumped a single to right and went to second on a wild pitch. Brett Phillips pinch-ran and Kiermaier and Luplow walked, loading the bases and chasing Fry.
Tate entered and Cruz hit a liner off Jorge Mateo’s glove at third for a two-run double and the lead.
Wander Franco was next, singling to centerfield past a drawn-in infield, scoring a pair.
Manuel Margot capped the Rays’ scoring on a single to center.
While Tampa Bay went 1-8 with runners in scoring position in the front five innings, the Rays ended the night 5-15 wRISP.
The New What Next
Shane McClanahan (5-4, 3.74 ERA) will get the start Saturday, pitching opposite of fellow rookie Spenser Watkins (2-2, 3.81 ERA).
Shane McClanahan allowed one run on four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in six innings against Boston on Sunday. McClanahan limited Boston to a single run and really only encountered trouble in the fourth inning when Hunter Renfroe homered. Otherwise, he was able to work out of a two-on, one-out jam. The successful outing marks consecutive quality turns for McClanahan, who went six innings while allowing one run or less. The left-hander now maintains a 3.74 ERA and a 3.58 FIP on the season, with a 1.29 WHIP, and 3.37 K/BB through 77.0 innings. The left-hander is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in one start against the Orioles this season.
Spenser Watkins allowed four runs on three hits and two walks with four strikeouts across 5.2 innings on Sunday versus Detroit. Sunday was the second start in a row in which Watkins surrendered four runs. Baltimore took an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, yet the right-hander gave it all back by the end of the frame. He’s posted a 3.81 ERA and a 4.17 FIP on the season, with a 1.31 WHIP and a 1.64 K/BB in 26 innings. The rookie held the Rays to one run on four hits and two walks over six innings in one start this season. Key Matchups: Randy Arozarena (2-3, 2B, RBI), Ji-Man Choi (1-2, BB), Francisco Mejía (1-1)
You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup and Noteworthiness are below.
Rays 8/7/21 Starting Lineup
- Lowe 2B
- Cruz DH
- Franco SS
- Meadows LF
- Díaz 1B
- Wendle 3B
- Margot RF
- Kiermaier CF
- Zunino C
- McClanahan LHP
Noteworthiness
— Collin McHugh (arm fatigue) has been activated from the Injured List, while Louis Head has been optioned to Durham. With a 1.35 ERA and a 2.72 FIP across 20.0 innings on the season, Head will assuredly be back.
— Nick Anderson (right elbow sprain), J.P. Feyereisen (bicep tendinitis), and Ryan Thompson (shoulder tightness) are throwing bullpens in St. Petersburg today. Chris Archer (left hip tightness) will throw a bullpen session on Sunday or Monday.
— Brendan McKay (shoulder) was moved to Double-A Montgomery although had a tough time in his first start there.