Rays at Red Sox
Knuckleballer Steven Wright was a revelation for the Boston Red Sox last year, winning 13 games in his first full season as a starter and earning a selection to the All-Star Game. Wright is off to a rocky start on the young season and attempts to get back on track when Boston winds up a four-game series against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Monday morning.
It's the annual Patriots Day game for the Red Sox, who have marked the state holiday by playing at home every year since 1959 and shifted to a morning start time in 1968 to coincide with the running of the Boston Marathon. John Farrell earned his 500th managerial win Sunday as Boston rallied for a 7-5 victory behind three RBIs from Mitch Moreland, who has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games. Corey Dickerson homered and recorded multiple hits for the fifth time in 11 games for Tampa Bay, which fell to 1-5 on its seven-game road trip. Young left-hander Blake Snell, who permitted nine walks in nine innings in splitting a pair of decisions against Boston last season, will oppose Wright in the series finale.
TV: 11:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FSN Sun (Tampa Bay), NESN (Boston)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays LH Blake Snell (0-1, 3.18 ERA) vs. Red Sox RH Steven Wright (0-1, 13.50)
Snell's biggest issue in his rookie campaign last year was a failure to provide innings, accumulating only 89 in 19 starts and not pitching beyond the fifth in nine of his last 10 appearances. While he was erratic in his season-opening start, giving up five runs and five walks, he matched a career high with 6 2/3 innings. Snell's bugaboo returned last time out at Yankee Stadium as he failed to get through the fifth.
Wright had a decent season debut until allowing a seventh-inning, three-run homer in a no-decision at Detroit, but there was nothing positive to take away from a disastrous outing versus Baltimore on Wednesday. Wright was hammered for eight runs on eight hits, including four homers, in only 1 1/3 innings. He made his final start last year against the Rays, giving up two homers and four runs in four innings of a no-decision.
WALK-OFFS
1. Red Sox DH Hanley Ramirez exited Sunday's game with a cramp in his left hamstring
2. Rays RHP Austin Pruitt has been tagged for 12 runs and 20 hits over 5 2/3 innings spanning six appearances.
3. Boston is 69-52 all-time on Patriots Day.