Rays Open Fifth Straight Postseason Against Rangers in AL Wild Card Series

The Tampa Bay Rays begin their fifth consecutive postseason on Tuesday, hosting the Texas Rangers in the American League Wild Card round at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. First pitch is set for 3:08 p.m., and all three possible games in the series will air on ABC.

The Rays arrive after a year of sharp swings. They opened the season with a record 13-0 winning streak and kept up the pace through the All-Star Break, going 58-35 to hold first place in the AL East.

Much of the offense came from two players. Outfielder Randy Arozarena hit .254 with 23 home runs, 83 RBIs and an .789 OPS. Third baseman Isaac Paredes also hit .254, adding 31 home runs, 98 RBIs and an .840 OPS.

Pitching was a different story, as injuries shaped the staff all year. Tyler Glasnow dealt with an oblique injury in spring training but recovered to become one of Tampa Bay's top arms, finishing 10-7 with a 3.53 ERA over 21 starts. The most significant loss was ace Shane McClanahan, who had Tommy John surgery after an elbow injury and is expected to be out roughly 18 months. At the time he went down, he was 11-2 with a 3.29 ERA in 115 innings, pitching at a Cy Young level. Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano noted that the injuries meant the rotation the team projected for 2023 never took the field together.

The team has also been without star shortstop Wander Franco, who has been away since allegations surfaced on social media and an investigation began in the Dominican Republic over an alleged relationship with a minor. Franco was placed on administrative leave on August 22. The Rays have gone 28-15 since then.

The regular season gives Tampa Bay little reason for comfort against Texas. The Rays went 2-4 in six games against the Rangers, including a three-game sweep in mid-July. The margin was slim, though, with Texas outscoring Tampa Bay just 27-25 across those games.

Glasnow, who starts Game 1, owns one of those wins. According to ESPN.com, Texas hit just .189 against him this season, and he struck out 13 Rangers batters. Tampa Bay also has home-field familiarity on its side, with a 4-2 record against Texas at Tropicana Field over the past two seasons.

Texas will counter with left-hander Jordan Montgomery, who has thrown only six and two-thirds postseason innings and did not face Tampa Bay this season. The Rays know him from his years with the New York Yankees, however. He is 4-4 with a 5.12 ERA in 13 career starts against them.

Montgomery will have strong run support. The Rangers led the American League with 880 runs and also topped the league in team home runs, batting average and slugging percentage. Tampa Bay finished only percentage points behind Texas in most of those categories.