Al Reyes is on the way to the disabled list, and Kirt Birkins is on his way up. (Source)“Al Reyes has been placed on the 15-day DL with a shoulder impingement (basically an inflammation around the rotator cuff that causes pain when you lift your arm) and Kurt Birkins has been activated from the DL to take his roster spot.”Also, if Mark Lancaster’s lineup is correct, B.J. Upton has been moved into the number 3 spot ahead of Carlos Pena.
Thanks to the infinite wisdom of the MLB schedule-makers, the Rays head to Minnesota for a two-game set before returning home to take on the Chicago White Sox. That’s right, the Rays are going to head to the midwest for 2 games, then return home to play games against another midwest team. Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?
The Rays need to try to bounce back from back-to-back disappointing losses to the Yankees. The Rays have their best pitcher on the hill trying to do that, as James Shields takes on Livan Hernandez. Hernandez is pitching way over his head right now - and getting a little lucky - and is due to come back down to earth. How about we make that happen tonight?
What to watch for: The Twins’ offense - though it has two All-Stars in the middle - is pretty weak. James Shields should be able to carve it apart.
Jonny Gomes was 2-for-3 with a home run in his only game against Livan Hernandez. If he’s not in the lineup, Joe Maddon should be drug-tested.
Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
James Shields - Currently the Rays’ top pitcher, Shields is coming off a solid performance in his ‘08 Tropicana Field debut, allowing two earned runs over six innings vs. Baltimore. The right-hander will take the mound next vs. Minnesota, a team he has traditionally struggled against. Shields is 1-1 in two games against the Twins, posting a 6.71 ERA.
Livan Hernandez- In his first road start for the Twins, Hernandez looked like his transition to the American League has been no sweat. Facing the Royals for the second straight time, Hernandez pitched seven scoreless innings while allowing seven hits and walking just one. The Cuban right-hander continues to shut down opponents with his slow-moving curveball and ability to mix in all of his pitches. Next up will be a start at the Metrodome, where he faces the Rays. He’s 2-2 with a 5.77 ERA in six career starts against Tampa Bay.
Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Livan Hernandez.
View the game preview from Baseball Reference.
| TAMPA BAY RAYS |
MINNESOTA TWINS |
| 2B - Akinori Iwamura | CF - Carlos Gomez |
| LF - Carl Crawford | RF - Denard Span |
| CF - B.J. Upton | C - Joe Mauer |
| 1B - Carlos Pena | 1B - Justin Morneau |
| 3B - Evan Longoria | LF - Delmon Young |
| RF -Eric Hinske | DH - Jason Kubel |
| DH - Jonny Gomes | 2B - Brendan Harris |
| C - Shawn Riggans | 3B - Mike Lamb |
| SS - Jason Bartlett | SS - Nick Punto |
Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!
Tags: Twins
April 16th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Not to take a line from Cork, but “Why the Rays Columnists Suck: Marc Lancaster:”
According to Lancaster, there’s “Nothing unusual tonight” in the lineup… EXCEPT HE THEN LISTS THAT B.J. UPTON IS HITTING THIRD AND CARLOS PENA IS HITTING FOURTH! How is that not unusual???
April 16th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Hahaha, good call. I wondered the same thing, Scott.
I’m curious to know if this is a typo or an actual change in the line-up. I’ve always liked the idea of Upton hitting third.
Who knows though. Nothing unusual tonight.
April 16th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
It’s official.
“A slight switch in the lineup, Maddon moved B.J. Upton to the third spot, calling it a Pena “sandwich;” the reason was to give the Twins something to think about matchup wise, breaking up the left-handed bats at the top of the order..”