What to watch for: I like this match-up for a few reasons. Hammel had a respectable outing against the Yankees last time out and is catching an Orioles team that is really scuffling over the last few days. They are tired, they are cranky, and they are probably a little down on themselves. If Hammel can work ahead and utilize his breaking pitches, he could be in for a nice outing tonight. Moreover, I love the matchup of the Rays’ suddenly alive lineup against the very iffy Daniel Cabrera. We hit him pretty well in Game 2; in fact, everyone looks like they can hit him right now.
Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Jason Hammel - Hammel got off to a rough start against the Yankees Monday night when he surrendered a two-run homer to Bobby Abreu in the first. But he settled into a rhythm, showing good composure and command of his pitches while adding four scoreless frames to his line. The Yankees added two more in the sixth to hand Hammel his first loss of the season, but overall he had an encouraging outing. Hammel is 0-3 with an 8.84 ERA in four starts against the Orioles; he is 0-5 with a 6.87 ERA at Tropicana Field.
Daniel Cabrera - Cabrera completed six innings in his last start, but he also gave up two home runs and four earned runs. The right-hander has given up 10 earned runs in his first two outings of the year, and he’s walked nine batters against seven strikeouts. Cabrera has led the American League in walks for two straight seasons and is a distinct threat this year.
Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Daniel Cabrera.
View the game preview from Baseball Reference.
| TAMPA BAY RAYS |
BALTIMORE ORIOLES |
| 2B - Akinori Iwamura | 2B - Brian Roberts |
| LF - Carl Crawford | 3B - Melvin Mora |
| 1B - Carlos Pena | RF - Nick Markakis |
| CF - B.J. Upton | 1B - Kevin Millar |
| DH - Eric Hinske | DH - Aubrey Huff |
| 3B - Evan Longoria | LF - Luke Scott |
| RF - Nathan Haynes | C - Ramon Hernandez |
| C - Shawn Riggans | CF - Adam Jones |
| SS - Elliot Johnson | SS - Luis Hernandez |
Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!
Tags: Orioles
