And so it begins. This could be the single biggest week in the history of Rays baseball, with three games against the Angels followed by three games against the White Sox. Going 3-3 this week likely solidifies the Rays’ spot amongst the elite of the American League. Any less and they will begin to be questioned by pundits and fans alike about whether or not they can handle the pressure without Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford.

Not to mention that the Red Sox get to beat on the Orioles for the next 3 days; this series right here couldn’t be any bigger.

Andy Sonnanstine takes to the bump in Game 1, looking to build upon his already solid season. He’s got 15 wins in his sights, and is looking to earn himself a postseason start should the Rays hang on down the stretch. A good way to earn that spot would be to beat the Angels tonight.

What to watch for: Eric Hinske has dominated Jon Garland in their past meetings; couple that with the way that Carlos Pena, Willy Aybar, and Cliff Floyd are hitting right now, and you could certainly have a winning offensive formula.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Andy Sonnanstine - Sonnanstine picked up his 12th win of the season Wednesday night, when he held the A’s to two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out six. The right-hander is a master of deception, employing an array of pitches that he can throw from all different angles. But he has learned to primarily use his fastball to set up the other pitches. Sonnanstine is 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA in two career starts against the Angels; he is 7-8 with a 5.36 ERA in 21 career starts at Tropicana Field.

Jon Garland - Holding the Mariners to three runs across seven innings on Tuesday night, Garland maintained his remarkable consistency by pitching at least six innings for the 17th time in 24 outings. On nine occasions he has pitched at least seven innings. He has averaged 6 1/3 innings per start this season. Garland is 5-1 with a 3.03 ERA in 10 career starts against the Rays. He’s 3-0 in six outings at Tropicana Field, with a 2.13 ERA.

Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Jon Garland.

View the game preview from Baseball Reference.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

39 games left, and this is where we stand. 4.5 games ahead of the Red Sox and 9.5 games ahead of the Yankees. We’re probably just days away from being able to officially write off the Yankees as a true contender to the AL East throne.

I’m going to assume (I know it’s a big assumption, but it makes this easier), that the Rays win their “extra” game that they have over the Red Sox, which gives them a full 5-game lead in the division with 38 left to play. Of those 38, the Rays play the Red Sox 6 times. If the Rays can manage merely a split in those games, that keeps the Rays up by 5 games with just 32 games left.

What does that mean? If the Red Sox were to play at the same winning percentage that they are at now, they would go 18-14 during those last 32 games. If that’s the case, the Rays would need to go just 14-18 in their final 32 to win the division by a single game. Even if the Rays split evenly and go .500 down the stretch (16-16), the Red Sox would have to go 21-11 just to tie for the division lead and either force a one-game playoff or split the division/wild card with the Rays. That certainly seems doable to me. If you then consider that the Rays hold a 5-game lead on the White Sox/Twins right now, they’d have to play equally bad (if not worse) to lose out on the Wild Card to the AL Central trailer.

And that, my friends, is why the Rays have 91 percent playoff odds right now.

Right now, the Rays stand at 6-3 on this road trip, so either way tonight turns out, the team has been hugely successful over the past week and a half. That said, heading into the week ahead against the Angels and White Sox having gone 7-3 on this swing would be a tremendous boost to the squad.

What to watch for: Dustin Nippert hasn’t started a big league game since 2006 and has a career WHIP of over 1.7. If ever the Rays were going to torch a guy, tonight would be the night.

Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Scott Kazmir - Kazmir took his sixth loss of the season Tuesday night when he allowed two runs in a five-inning stint against the A’s. The 24-year-old left-hander has struggled with his mechanics lately and has worked all season with little luck to gain command of his slider, which has historically been his best pitch. Without his slider, Kazmir has relied primarily on a fastball-changeup combination. He is 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA in two starts against the Rangers this season, and is 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in two career starts at Rangers Ballpark.

Dustin Nippert - Nippert is the leading candidate to replace Luis Mendoza, who was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma on Friday. Another possibility is rookie Tommy Hunter. Nippert has pitched four innings in each of his past five outings and has a 3.98 ERA.

Check out the Rays’ career numbers against Dustin Nippert.

View the game preview from Baseball Reference.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

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.

Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!

Marc Lancaster

OAKLAND—Carl Crawford will undergo surgery on his right middle finger Thursday in Arizona, executive vice president Andrew Friedman said today. Hand specialist Dr. Donald Sheridan will perform the procedure in Scottsdale—Crawford’s year-round home.

Crawford is expected to miss 6-8 weeks, so he could conceivably return for the final week of the regular season.

“If every single thing went extremely well, I’d say there’s a chance he could play in a regular-season game,” said Friedman.

 Per the The Heater:

The Rays have placed Evan Longoria on the 15-day disabled list with a fractured right wrist and recalled outfielder Justin Ruggiano from Durham.

This is not good.

ESPN News…

… thinks that Gary Sheffield is lobbying to be dealt to the Rays.

I can’t imagine any situation in which Sheffield would get past all of the other teams in the league before the Rays could make a waiver claim (or a situation where the Tigers would trade him mid-pennant race), but it makes for good conversation at least.

The thought of Rocco Baldelli being anywhere near the Trop tonight gets me all sorts of giddy. I know that there’s many people who feel like he’s overrated, and others who feel like there’s nothing he can add to the team, but he’s one of my favorite players in franchise history, and I will certainly applaud his return to the lineup if it happens tonight.