Despite having some of the worst pitching in the history of Western Civilization, the Texas Rangers are a dangerous ballclub with a lethal lineup, so this 3-game weekend tilt in Arlington to finish off this road trip is a big one for the Rays.
Right now, the Rays are 5-2 on this road trip through the bottom of the AL West; if the Rays can take 2-out-of-3 or even sweep the Rangers, it would put an incredbile end to one of the most successful – and important – road trips in team history.
What to watch for: If Matt Garza can hold the Rangers’ bats at bay, we should be fine. Kevin Millwood is not very good at baseball anymore. You might remember that this is the site of Garza’s blow-up with Dioner Navarro earlier in the season. Some might say that turned his entire campaign around.
Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Matt Garza - Garza will be making his 23 start of the season after earning a no-decision against the Mariners on Saturday night. Garza allowed five runs in the first two innings, but never gave in to finish his outing with 3 2/3 scoreless innings before getting lifted with the lead. Garza has a mid-90s fastball that sinks, a curve, a slider and a changeup. He is 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA in three career starts against the Rangers; he is 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in one career start at Rangers Ballpark.
Kevin Millwood – Millwood will be making his first start since being placed on the disabled list July 24 with a strained right groin. He made one rehab start with Double-A Frisco and allowed two runs, one earned, in four innings. He allowed five hits and two walks while striking out six. With his return to the rotation, Millwood will try to end a streak of three straight winless starts, having not earned a victory since July 6. Friday will be his first start of the season against Tampa Bay, against which he’s 1-1 in three career starts, with a 6.63 ERA.
Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Kevin Millwood
View the game preview from Baseball Reference.
| TAMPA BAY RAYS |
TEXAS RANGERS |
| LINEUP 1 | LINEUP 1 |
| LINEUP 2 | LINEUP 2 |
| LINEUP 3 | LINEUP 3 |
| LINEUP 4 | LINEUP 4 |
| LINEUP 5 | LINEUP 5 |
| LINEUP 6 | LINEUP 6 |
| LINEUP 7 | LINEUP 7 |
| LINEUP 8 | LINEUP 8 |
| LINEUP 9 | LINEUP 9 |
Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!
Tags: Rangers
August 15th, 2008 at 11:23 pm
Garza=Freaking dominant. In a time when the Rays needed to rest the pen Garza comes out dealing all kinds of filth and blowing away the Rangers offense. Really only 1 legitimate hit off of him and 2 walks.
Now what the hell is going on w/ Upton? Why was he lifted, lazy down the path again?
Rays Win!!
August 15th, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Yes – he dogged it on both a grounder that he hit and a double play that was hit behind him. I’ll have my thoughts on it in the recap.