After dropping the series opener against the White Sox in extras on Friday, 7-5, the Tampa Bay Rays look to even in the set Saturday afternoon.
At 75-48 on the season, Tampa Bay enters play 27-games over .500 and four-games up on the Yankees in the division. The Rays are now 5-11 in extra innings, and 70-37 in regulation games.
Meanwhile, the South Siders have won six of their last seven games at the Trop, although Tampa Bay is 32-11 in the last 43 home games.
The New What Next
Luis Patiño (2-3, 4.73 ERA) will get the start for the Rays this afternoon, pitching opposite of Dallas Keuchel (8-6, 4.48 ERA).
Luis Patiño worked three innings and surrendered two runs on two hits and five walks while striking out two on Sunday against Minnesota. Patiño didn’t face an inning’s limit or a pitch count in his ninth start of the season, yet thanks to the season-high five walks, Kevin Cash elected to pull him early after 69 pitches and nine outs. The rookie southpaw had been more efficient over his prior five outings — he worked no fewer than five innings in any of those starts. Patiño maintains a 4.73 ERA and a 4.79 FIP across 45.2 innings, with a 1.31 WHIP and a 2.40 K/BB.
Dallas Keuchel allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out two across five innings against Oakland on Monday. Keuchel survived a rocky second inning in which he allowed a home run, two walks, and an HBP, then watched the bullpen nail down the win with four scoreless frames. The left-hander had thrown just 79 pitches, yet given his 11.77 ERA in the sixth inning, Michael Kopech, Craig Kimbrel, and Liam Hendriks finished up. Keuchel’s has performed to a 5.13 ERA in the second half, and maintains a 4.48 ERA and a 5.28 FIP across 130.2 innings, with a 1.33 WHIP and a 1.80 K/BB. He held the Rays scoreless across seven innings on June 15, although he is 2-5 with a 4.18 ERA across nine career starts against Tampa Bay. Key Matchups: Randy Arozarena (1-3), Nelson Cruz (18-57, 2B, 6 HR, 10 RBI, 9 BB), Yandy Diaz (1-3), Austin Meadows (1-3, 2B), Mike Zunino (7-27, 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB)
You can read about the series in our preview, while the starting lineup and Noteworthiness are below.
Rays 8/21/21 Starting Lineup
Noteworthiness
— The Rays made a handful of roster moves today, optioning RHP Chris Mazza to Triple-A Durham and selecting RHP David Hess. To clear space on the 40-man roster, 1B Mike Ford was designated for assignment.
— The Rays announced that RHP Chris Archer will be activated from the 60-Day IL ahead of his start on Sunday. Other roster moves are TBD.
— Ryan Thompson threw a scoreless rehab inning for Triple-A Durham yesterday, while right-hander David Robertson continued to work his way up to the big-leagues with a scoreless frame in the same contest.