After a disastrous start to their five-game road trip, punctuated by a 15-6 loss in the series finale against the Nationals, the Tampa Bay Rays shuffle off to Buffalo where they will start a three-game set against the Dunedin Buffalo Toronto Blue Jays on Friday. The Blue Jays dropped two of three against the Mariners this past week.
The Rays enter play in the midst of a three-game skid, 13-games above .500 and 3.5 games behind the division-leading Red Sox.
It was an ugly two-games in the nation’s capital, yet the Rays miraculously still averaged 4.5 runs per game. Rewinding a bit, Tampa Bay has been rather unlucky at the plate the last four series, putting up a combined .267 BABIP. And while they have had runners on the base paths, they haven’t been able to get them home absent the long ball. Even so, they still have been able to put up the third-most runs in the American League … behind, you guessed it, the Blue Jays.
Meanwhile, given the way Rays’ hurlers looked on Wednesday, Toronto could have an opportunity to feast at the plate. After all, they have put up an impressive .266 BA/.331 OBP/.453 SLG/.784 OPS slash line on the season, while the Rays pitching staff has been rather shaky the last two weeks, performing to a 5.02 ERA and a 4.23 FIP. In short, Toronto scores a lot of runs and hits a lot of homers. It will be incumbent upon Luis Patiño, Shane McClanahan, and Ryan Yarbrough to put up some good performances in the next three games.
All this being said, the Rays have feasted on the Blue Jays all season with a 5-2 lead in head-to-head meetings.
Pitching Probables
Kevin Cash will turn to Luis Patiño (1-1, 3.60 ERA), Shane McClanahan (3-2, 4.09 ERA), and Ryan Yarbrough (4-3, 4.48 ERA) the next three days. Charlie Montoyo will counter with Alek Manoah (1-0, 3.34 ERA), Ross Stripling (3-4, 4.27 ERA), and Robbie Ray (6-3, 3.43 ERA).
Luis Patiño has been pitching well for Triple-A Durham, throwing 17 straight scoreless frames while maintaining a 2.21 ERA and a 2.03 FIP. Between his recent form and the injury to Tyler Glasnow, Patiño could stick with the big-league club if he carries over his strong performance from the minors. The right-hander has thrown five innings in each of his last three starts, so it would be foreseeable for him to pitch into the sixth assuming his pitch count is in order. Overall, Patiño is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA and a 3.56 FIP across 15 big-league innings, with a 1.07 WHIP and a 4.75 K/BB.
Alex Manoah allowed one unearned run on four hits and two walks over six innings against the Orioles on Friday. He struck out six. The rookie right-hander exited the game after 97 pitches (69 strikes, 71% strike rate), but an eighth-inning meltdown by the Jays’ bullpen instead forced Manoah to settle for his third quality start in six trips to the mound. It was a strong rebound effort after he served up four homers to Baltimore in his last outing, and the 23-year-old maintains a 3.34 ERA and a 5.32 FIP, with a 3.0 K/BB and a 1.11 WHIP across 29-2/3 innings on the season.
Shane McClanahan pitched six strong innings against the Angels on Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out seven. McClanahan recovered from a 36-pitch, three-run third, and threw just 51 pitches in the other five frames combined. All four hits came in the third inning, yet three of the four hits were “lucky,” in that the xBA on them was under .250. All told, the southpaw threw 87 pitches (64 strikes, 74% Str%, 10 swings and misses, 16% SwStr%) and leaning heavily on his fastball and slider combo while also mixing in 11 curveballs and three changeups. McClanahan now owns a 4.09 ERA and a 3.74 FIP on the season, with a 3.81 K/BB and a 1.26 WHIP across 50-2/3 innings.
Ross Stripling allowed two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out three across five innings against the Orioles on Sunday. Stripling had posted quality starts in each of his last two turns, but he had to settle for a loss and a no-decision in those outings. While he didn’t last long enough to earn a quality start Sunday, he picked up his first win since the start of June. Across his last seven outings (40-1/3 innings), he’s posted a 2.45 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP. Overall, Stripling owns a 4.27 ERA and a 4.38 FIP on the season, with a 3.78 K/BB and a 1.24 WHIP across 65-1/3 innings. In his lone outing against Tampa Bay on May 24, he blanked the Rays on two hits across seven strong innings. Key Matchups: Brandon Lowe (1-3, 2B, BB), Manuel Margot (6-16, 2 2B, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB), Joey Wendle (2-2, 2B)
Ryan Yarbrough allowed two runs on six hits and a walk over six innings on Sunday against the Angels. He struck out four. Yarbrough coughed up RBI base hits in the fourth and sixth innings, including an RBI double by Shohei Ohtani. Even so, it was his first quality start in his last three outings after giving up five runs in each of his previous two. Yarbrough now owns a 4.48 ERA and a 4.32 FIP on the season, with a 1.19 WHIP and a 4.67 K/BB across 86-1/3 innings. He is 0-0 with a 2.31 ERA in two outings (one start) against Toronto this season.
Robbie Ray held the Mariners to three runs on five hits and a walk while striking out 10 across six innings on Tuesday. Ray blanked the Mariners until the sixth inning when Ty France broke through with a three-run homer. Whatever the case, the southpaw continued to rack up strikeouts, recording his fourth double-digit effort of the season. It’s been a solid month for Ray, who logged his fifth quality start out of six June outings, and his 10th overall. He now owns a 3.23 ERA and a 4.20 FIP on the season, with a 5.09 K/BB and a 1.12 WHIP across 86-2/3 innings. Ray is 0-0 with a 2.72 ERA across two starts against Tampa Bay this season. Key Matchups: Ji-Man Choi (1-3), Kevin Kiermaier (1-4), Francisco Mejía (1-3, 2B, RBI), Mike Zunino (3-12, 2B, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB)
Noteworthiness
— The Rays are expected to reactivate INF Taylor Walls (wrist inflammation) from the 10-day Injured List ahead of the series opener.