Tampa Bay pulled to within 1 1/2 games of the AL East lead Sept. 4 after a fourth straight win, but is now five games behind New York after dropping seven of 10. The Rays (78-68) also trail Baltimore by four games for the AL's second wild-card spot.
Tampa Bay will play six of its next nine games against Boston (66-81) and the other three versus Toronto. The Rays travel to Fenway Park for two games Sept. 25-26.
The Rays will likely need a more consistent performance against the Red Sox to get things going. They're just 5-7 this season against their AL East rivals after winning 23 of 36 meetings over the previous two campaigns.
Alex Cobb (9-8, 4.26 ERA) will try to deliver a win in this matchup while going deeper in this game. The right-hander has given up two runs in each of his last two starts but lasted only 4 2-3 innings in a 3-2 loss in Baltimore on Wednesday.
Cobb is 5-0 with a 3.31 ERA in eight starts since the beginning of August, but he hasn't faced Boston since May 25. He gave up two runs, three hits and four walks over five innings of that 7-4 win at Fenway.
The Red Sox have dropped 14 of 18 and 10 of 13 on the road, but won their first two games in Toronto this weekend before falling 5-0 in Sunday's finale. They were 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position in that defeat, which put them one shy of the franchise's first losing season since 1997.
Aaron Cook (3-10, 5.18) is hoping a better performance from his teammates will help him end a five-game losing streak.
He was dealt the latest of those defeats Wednesday against the Yankees. The right-hander gave up three runs over five innings but was given only one run of support in a 5-4 loss.
Cook has received a combined two runs over his last three outings.
Cook will face Tampa Bay for the first time since June 17, 2009. He's 1-1 with a 6.63 ERA in three all-time match-ups.
Red Sox are 18-41 in their last 59 games as an underdog.
Red Sox are 8-20 in their last 28 vs. a team with a winning record.
Red Sox are 7-19 in their last 26 overall.
Red Sox are 2-7 in their last 9 road games vs. a right-handed starter.Red Sox are 1-4 in their last 5 games vs. a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30.
Red Sox are 0-7 in their last 7 road games vs. a team with a winning record.
Red Sox are 1-4 in Cooks last 5 starts with 4 days of rest.
Red Sox are 0-5 in Cooks last 5 road starts.
Red Sox are 0-6 in Cooks last 6 starts following a team loss in their previous game.
Red Sox are 0-5 in Cooks last 5 starts as an underdog.
Red Sox are 0-4 in Cooks last 4 starts vs. a team with a winning record.
Red Sox are 0-6 in Cooks last 6 starts.
Red Sox are 0-5 in Cooks last 5 starts as a road underdog.
Rays are 4-1 in their last 5 games as a home favorite.
Rays are 10-3 in their last 13 during game 1 of a series.
Rays are 1-5 in their last 6 overall.
Rays are 0-4 in their last 4 games vs. a right-handed starter.
Rays are 4-0 in Cobbs last 4 starts with 4 days of rest.
Rays are 7-1 in Cobbs last 8 starts.
Rays are 4-1 in Cobbs last 5 starts as a favorite.
Rays are 2-5 in Cobbs last 7 starts vs. a team with a losing record.
Every time Cook throws the ball we are all reminded of how bad he is. Nothing changes today, nothing at all. The only reason this guy is still pitching is because Boston has zero chance of going into the post season and zero chance of having a .500 season. Tampa Bay however is still in the hunt and will be doing everything in their power to win every game they play. TB has the superior pitcher tonight so we'll jump on them 1H and RL and i believe we hit both easily. Good Luck
TAM RAYS -1½+110
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