Baltimore Orioles (39-22, second in the AL East) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (31-31, fourth in the AL East)
St. Petersburg, Florida; Friday, 6:50 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Orioles: Cole Irvin (5-2, 2.84 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 37 strikeouts); Rays: Aaron Civale (2-4, 5.37 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 60 strikeouts)
BOTTOM LINE: The Tampa Bay Rays open a four-game series at home against the Baltimore Orioles on Friday.
Tampa Bay is 17-18 in home games and 31-31 overall. The Rays have a 13-3 record in games when they did not give up a home run.
Baltimore is 18-10 on the road and 39-22 overall. Orioles hitters have a collective .445 slugging percentage to lead the AL.
The teams meet Friday for the fourth time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Isaac Paredes has 13 doubles and 10 home runs for the Rays. Brandon Lowe is 9-for-27 with two doubles, two triples, a home run and 10 RBI over the last 10 games.
Gunnar Henderson has 19 home runs, 35 walks and 42 RBI while hitting .265 for the Orioles. Adley Rutschman is 15-for-42 with a double, three home runs and 10 RBI over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Rays: 6-4, .232 batting average, 3.58 ERA, even run differential
Orioles: 6-4, .276 batting average, 3.17 ERA, outscored opponents by 25 runs
INJURIES: Rays: Jacob Waguespack: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Colin Poche: 15-Day IL (back), Taylor Walls: 60-Day IL (hip), Jeffrey Springs: 60-Day IL (elbow), Drew Rasmussen: 60-Day IL (elbow), Shane McClanahan: 60-Day IL (forearm)
Orioles: Jorge Mateo: 7-Day IL (concussion), Dean Kremer: 15-Day IL (tricep), John Means: 15-Day IL (elbow), Tyler Wells: 15-Day IL (elbow), Felix Bautista: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
