The Tampa Bay Rays (65-44) will be going for the series win when they face the New York Yankees (55-51) in the final game of their three-game series on Wednesday night.
Shane McClanahan, 11-1, 3.00 ERA, will get the start for the Rays. The Yankees will counter with Gerrit Cole, 9-2, 2.64 ERA.
New York and Tampa Bay split their last 10 meetings.
**This preview was written before Tuesday’s game was played**
The Rays have played well since their series loss to Baltimore, winning four of their last six games. They are now 1.5 games behind the Orioles in the AL East standings and will try to reduce the gap with another win over the Yankees, which will give them their fifth win in their last seven games and the series win.
Tampa Bay is averaging 5.19 runs per game. Their .255 batting average is 10th in the league. Their .327 on base percentage is 11th, while their .447 slugging percentage is fifth.
Yandy Diaz leads the Rays with a .318 batting average, while Isaac Paredes leads the team with 21 home runs and 63 RBI.
Tampa Bay’s pitching has been good, with the team giving up 3.92 runs per game. Opponents have a .227 batting average against the Rays, which leads the league. Their 3.78 ERA is third, while their 1.19 WHIP is second. 3;
In his last start, McClanahan gave up eight hits and three runs in five innings, leading to a 4-3 win over Houston. They will need a better effort from him if they want to win this game.