Tampa Bay @ Toronto preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 5, 2018 ) Tampa Bay 3, Toronto 10

The Tampa Bay Rays are not going away easily in the quest for a playoff spot and look to extend their winning streak to six when they visit the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday night to open a four-game series. Tampa Bay completed a sweep at Texas with a 9-3 triumph Wednesday afternoon and remained within 5 1/2 games of Oakland for the American League’s second wild card.

“We need help, there’s no doubt about that,” Rays manager Kevin Cash, whose team is 14-3 in September, told the Tampa Bay Times. “I like the way the guys have continued to go about their business day to day. That’s very cliche, but sometimes you have to go with that and control what you can control.” Joey Wendle went 8-for-12 with four doubles in the series while Tommy Pham homered twice Wednesday to help take three straight at Texas and Tampa Bay will go with a bullpen day Thursday as right-hander Ryne Stanek opens the game. Righty Sam Gaviglio is expected to go for Toronto in the opener after the Blue Jays saw their four-game winning streak come to an end Wednesday while managing four hits in the 2-1 loss at Baltimore. Rookie infielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had two of the hits for Toronto on Wednesday and is 6-for-16 with three RBIs during a four-game hitting streak to raise his batting average to .286.

TV: 7:07 p.m. ET, FS Sun (Tampa Bay), Sportsnet (Toronto)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays RH Ryne Stanek (2-3, 2.49 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH Sam Gaviglio (3-8, 5.25)

Stanek is slated to “open” the game for the 27th time this season and is 0-2 with a 2.50 ERA over 36 innings with 47 strikeouts and 16 walks in the role. The 27-year-old Kansas native has permitted just two hits and four walks over his last eight appearances, covering six scoreless innings in the stretch while fanning six. Stanek has not yielded a run across six innings against the Blue Jays in 2018, starting four of the five previous outings.

Gaviglio managed to hold Boston to two runs despite giving up six hits over 3 1/3 innings in a no-decision last time out on Sept. 13. The 28-year-old Oregon State product owns just one victory in his past nine decisions, dating back to May 25, and completed at least six innings one time in the last nine appearances. Jake Bauers is 2-for-2 with a homer and a double versus Gaviglio, who is 0-2 with a 6.23 ERA in two starts against the Rays this year.

WALK-OFFS

1. Toronto OF Billy McKinney was 3-for-7 with a homer in the last two games after an 0-for-18 stretch in his previous six contests.

2. The Rays recalled RHPs Chih-Wei Hu and Austin Pruitt along with LHP Hoby Milner and OF Austin Meadows from Triple-A Durham.

3. Tampa Bay has won nine of the first 12 meetings in the season series and ends the regular season at home against the Blue Jays, Sept. 28-30.

PREDICTION: Rays 7, Blue Jays 3