The Tampa Bay Rays will look to finish off a four-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox Thursday evening, with right-hander Drew Rasmussen (5-3, 3.11 ERA) getting the start against Kutter Crawford (2-2, 4.50 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10.
Rays Starting Lineup
Diaz 3B
Choi 1B
Ramirez DH
Aranda 2B
Bethancourt C
Lowe RF
Walls SS
L. Raley LF
Phillips CF
Red Sox Starting Lineup
Duran RF
Devers 3B
Martinez DH
Bogaerts SS
Verdugo LF
Cordero 1B
Plawecki C
Bradley CF
Downs 2B
Patino Expected To Be Activated Friday; Lowe, Fairbanks Close To Returning
With Shane Baz going back on the injured list Thursday with elbow troubles, the Rays find themselves in a bind and needing arms to fill innings betwene now and the All-Star break coming up after this weekend. Manager Kevin Cash said that despite having not pitched since July 2 on his rehab assignment due to a blister on his pitching hand, right-hander Luis Patino is expected to be activated from the 60-day injured list and pitch against the Baltimore Orioles on Friday.
Patino made just one start in 2022, leaving in the first inning on April 11 with a left oblique strain. He has made four rehab starts with Triple-A Durham, pitching as many as 78 pitches.
Cash said they do not expect Patino to pitch more than an inning or two due to the lack of work over the last two weeks.
The Rays manager had better news regarding second baseman Brandon Lowe and reliever Pete Fairbanks. Cash said Fairbanks would pitch in the second of his back-to-back relief appearances tonight for Durham, and that his velocity looks to be back to where it was before his lat injury.
Lowe is playing in his third consecutive contest tonight, serving as the designated hitter fot the Bulls as they take on Gwinnett. Cash said it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Lowe could be activated from the 60-day injured list this weekend as well.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
