In the final full month of the regular season, the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays have plenty at stake as they begin a three-game series Monday afternoon in St. Petersburg, Fla.
In opening a seven-game homestand, the Rays (83-54) will look to add to their American League-best home record of 45-23 (.662).
While the Rays rest firmly in the top AL wild-card spot, greater aspirations of winning the East Division certainly are within their grasp. After salvaging a game in Cleveland with a 6-2 win Sunday, Tampa Bay resides 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Baltimore Orioles (85-51).
So how important was winning one of the three games in Cleveland?
"It makes for a better flight; I don't know the level of importance," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "We've put ourselves in pretty good position where we're at."
The Rays took a hard hit in the bullpen when they placed reliable right-hander Jason Adam on the 15-day injured list with an oblique injury.
Possessing a 4-2 mark with a 2.67 ERA and 12 saves in 18 chances, Adam was unavailable in Saturday's 7-6 loss in 11 innings. Cash, instead, turned to newcomer Chris Devenski in a high-leverage situation.
In a corresponding move, the Rays recalled Sunday starter Taj Bradley, who is expected to stay with the big club for the remainder of the season.
Aaron Civale (7-3, 2.64 ERA) will make his third career start against the Red Sox. The right-hander is 1-1 with a 4.66 ERA across 9 2/3 innings.
In the past two seasons, the Rays are 19-8 against Boston. They are 22-15 in division play in 2023.
With 25 games left and on the back side of its six-game road trip, Boston (71-66) will have to find a winning consistency that has been lacking in its performances this season.
The club trails the Houston Astros by 5 1/2 games for the third AL wild-card spot.
Masataka Yoshida went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Kansas City Royals. Chris Sale (6-3) fired five scoreless innings with five strikeouts to record his first victory since May 26.
That triumph gave manager Alex Cora his 433rd win, passing John Farrell for sixth in franchise history.
Leadoff hitter Alex Verdugo will not play Monday due to a tight left hamstring he sustained on a defensive play.
"Day-to-day," Cora said afterward. "We'll stay away from him (Monday), and we'll see how he feels. He was between the ball, and when he stopped he felt that, so hopefully there's nothing major."
Brayan Bello (10-8, 3.57 ERA) will make his 24th start of 2023 and the 35th of his career. The right-hander's first two came against the Rays in July 2022.
He took the loss vs. Tampa Bay in his big-league debut in Boston on July 6 and recorded a no-decision five days later in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Across three career starts vs. the Rays, Bello is 0-2 with a 7.71 ERA. The Rays have hit .317 in 14 innings against the Dominican hurler.
This season, Boston sports a 19-14 record against the AL East. The Red Sox, however, have lost seven of eight meetings with the Rays in 2023.
—Field Level Media