Preview: Rays @ Red Sox
Jacob Faria gets the ball as the Rays try to even the series at one apiece
This afternoon, Jake Faria and the Rays look to snap their six-game losing streak against a Red Sox team that has won six straight.
Boston will send Rick Porcello to the mound, who’ll be looking for his second win in as many tries versus the Rays in 2018.
Today’s game will be televised on Fox Sports Sun. First pitch is set for 1:05 PM ET and is expected to be played in chilly conditions as temperatures feel like they’re in the mid 30’s in Boston.
Starting Pitchers
Jacob Faria
The sophomore right-hander did not factor into the decision in his first appearance of the season, allowing one run on four hits and three walks while striking out two batters in a 2-1 loss to Boston.
He was pulled after four innings, with Rays manager Kevin Cash opting to go the bullpen early. For what it’s worth, the move proved to be the correct decision as Rays pitching held the Red Sox to just two runs in the final five innings.
In 2017, Faria posted a respectable .248/.294/.436 slash-line against RHB’s while dominating LHB’s to the tune of .173/.314/.245.
Rick Porcello
Porcello comes into the game off a successful 2018 debut, completing 5.1 innings allowing one earned run on six hits and one walk while striking out four en route to a win last Saturday against the Rays.
The right-hander will try to continue the dominant pitching produced by the Red Sox rotation this season. Per CBS Sports, the Red Sox are the first team ever to have its starters allow one run or less in each of the first seven games of the season -- and it’s the longest Sox streak since an eight-gamer in 2000.
In 2017, the Porcello struggled against both RHB’s and LHB’s allowing hitters to slash .287/.321/.477 from the right side of the plate and .286/.336/.520 from the left side of the plate.
He owns a 13-8 record and 3.20 ERA lifetime against the Rays.
His repertoire, per Brooks Baseball:
Rick Porcello has thrown 26,881 pitches that have been tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2009 and 2018, including pitches thrown in the MLB Regular Season, the MLB Postseason and Spring Training. In 2018, he has relied primarily on his Sinker (90mph), also mixing in a Fourseam Fastball (92mph), Slider (87mph), Change using a Palm Ball grip (81mph) and Curve (74mph).