Kansas City-area thunderstorms postponed the start of the Tampa Bay Rays' series against the Royals. The game scheduled for Friday will instead be played as part of a split doubleheader on Saturday
The twin bill will be the Royals' first of the year. The Rays split a doubleheader on June 3 in Boston
Tampa Bay's Tyler Glasnow (2-3, 4.10 ERA) and Kansas City's Alec Marsh (0-2, 7.00) are scheduled to face off in the opener.
Glasnow dropped a 2-1 decision to the Atlanta Braves in his latest start, on July 7, fanning eight before leaving in the sixth inning due to cramping in his hands and legs.
In three career starts against Kansas City, the right-hander owns a 2.00 ERA over 18 innings -- though all three outings resulted in no-decisions for the 29-year-old. All-Star catcher Salvador Perez is hitless in seven at-bats with four strikeouts against Glasnow.
Glasnow struck out 12 of the 19 batters he faced in five innings during the most recent outing against the Royals, as the Rays won the June 25 contest to salvage a four-game split in St. Petersburg, Fla
"Pretty nasty stuff," Rays manager Kevin Cash said after the game. "We talked about getting his delivery in sync. It looked like he got it in sync. The delivery looked really clean.
Entering his third career start, Marsh has never faced Tampa Bay. In his latest outing, on July 5, he allowed three runs (two earned) in five innings during a 5-0 loss at Minnesota. Despite the result, Royals manager Matt Quatraro saw a lot he liked
"The curveball looked extremely sharp," Quatraro said, "(He) was able to get some swings and misses in the zone as well as chase. There were a lot of encouraging things there."
Right-hander Cooper Criswell (1-1, 5.14 ERA) will be added as the Rays' 27th man for the doubleheader and likely will serve as an opener in the nightcap. Criswell is 2-3 with a 5.51 ERA in 12 appearances -- 11 starts -- for Triple-A Durham this season. He has made six relief appearances with the Rays this season and has never faced Kansas City
Lefty Cole Ragans (2-3, 5.92 ERA), acquired from the Texas Rangers in the Aroldis Chapman deal on June 30, will make his Royals debut as their 27th man. He is 1-1 with a 4.19 ERA in five Triple-A starts this season and has never faced Tampa Bay
The Rays will be without All-Star first-baseman Yandy Diaz, who was placed on the paternity list on Friday. After hitting a home run in the All-Star Game in Seattle on Tuesday, Diaz rushed home to St. Petersburg, Fla., to be with his wife Mayisleidis. The couple's first child, son Yandy, was born on Wednesday
Right fielder Josh Lowe returned to the club from the family medical emergency list after missing games Saturday and Sunday prior to the All-Star break.
Perez singled and scored in the All-Star Game, but he begins the season's second half mired in a serious slump. He is hitting .093 (4-for-43) in 12 games dating to June 24 with 15 strikeouts and no extra-base hits. The power drought is two games shy of his longest career streak without an extra-base hit -- 14 games from Sept. 18, 2012, to April 3, 2013.
--Field Level Media