Alex Colome (3-2, 4.21 ERA) and Tanner Roark (2-2, 3.71 ERA) take the hill in the second of a two-game series between the Tampa Bay Rays (36-29) and the Washington Nationals (33-31) at Tropicana Field. The Rays won the last game 6-1 and Tampa Bay leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Jun. 16 and can be seen on MASN2 and SunSports.
Colome pitched 5.1 innings in his last outing, surrendering one run, striking out four and walking two in a 6-2 defeat to the Angels. Logan Forsythe (.271, 26 Rs, 7 HRs, 30 RBIs, 5 SBs) had another good game yesterday, going 3 for 5 with two RBIs. Roark went 6.2 innings, surrendering five runs, striking out four and walking one in a 6-5 defeat to the Brewers in his most recent start. Denard Span (.299, 27 Rs, 5 HRs, 19 RBIs, 6 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday.
Tampa Bay is a -120 favorite against Washington and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at seven runs. The Rays have an overall money line of +513 and a record as the favorite of 17-13. Tampa Bay is an impressive 4-1 as the favorite over its last 10 games. The Rays have seen an uptick in scoring against teams in the NL, averaging 5.0 runs per game. They average 3.7 runs per game on the season. Tampa Bay’s pitchers fall apart when National League teams are on the field. Its average runs allowed per game rises to 4.0 against NL teams, compared to its 3.5 season average. The Rays are the fourth-best team in the league at limiting hits and walks to their opponents, recording a WHIP of 1.19 so far this season. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Rays, who rank second in the AL in strikeouts per game with 8.5.
In the other locker room, Washington is coming in with an overall money line of -377 and a disappointing record of 6-9 as the underdog. Washington is 2-3 as the underdog and 5-5 SU against American League opponents. Washington is excellent at drawing walks with 3.3 per road game, ranking second in the NL. The Nationals allow 4.3 runs per game, but does worse whenever an AL opponent is on the schedule. They bring that runs allowed average up to 5.5 against teams from the AL. The Nationals have established a reputation of overwhelming hitters with an NL-best 8.1 strikeouts per road game, making them one of the top five teams in the league.
The Rays have the edge in the season series, 1-0. The Rays have a 22-21 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Roark takes the mound. Colome (RHP) will be on the hill against the Nationals, who have a 24-26 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – TB, O/U – Over
Notes
When the Nationals play into extra innings, they have a 4-1 record. The Rays are 2-2 when their games exceed nine innings.
Having scored one run in their last game, the Nationals are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Rays have a 16-1 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Rays are 24-5. The Nationals have a 24-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 26th, Tampa Bay is near the bottom of the league in runs, scoring 242 this season. Washington ranks in the top 10 at eighth with 273.
Ranking 17th, Tampa Bay is in the bottom half of the league in walks, notching 180 this season. Washington ranks in the top 10 at eighth with 201.
When the Rays hit at least one home run, they are 24-15, well-matched with the Nationals who are 24-14 when hitting one or more homers.
