Rays at Yankees (Game 2)
Severe weather forced the postponement of Wednesday's contest, so the New York Yankees and visiting Tampa Bay Rays will attempt to play a doubleheader on Thursday to complete their four-game series. New York posted an 8-3 victory on Tuesday to even the set and increase its lead over the Rays in the American League East to six games.
The Yankees possess the best record in the AL while Tampa Bay owns the top wild-card spot. New York slugger Edwin Encarnacion has gone deep three times over the first two games of the series. Tampa Bay's Austin Meadows homered on Tuesday and is 13-for-42 with four blasts against the Yankees this season. Travis d'Arnaud belted a career-best three homers for the Rays in the series opener before going hitless in four at-bats on Tuesday.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, FS Sun (Tampa Bay), YES (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays RH Charlie Morton (11-2, 2.35 ERA) vs. Yankees TBD
Morton has won three straight starts, registering 28 strikeouts while issuing only three walks in 18 2/3 innings during the stretch. The 35-year-old defeated New York on July 7, when he struck out 10 batters while giving up one run and five hits over 5 2/3 frames, and is 3-1 with a 4.00 ERA in six career turns versus the club. Morton has allowed fewer than three earned runs in 12 of his last 15 outings.
New York pushed originally scheduled starter J.A. Happ back to Friday after the postponement and didn't immediately announce a starter for the nightcap. The club likely will begin with an "opener" but could summon a pitcher from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to serve as its 26th man. "We decided with the consecutive games, we'd have to insert somebody," Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters after Wednesday's postponement, referring to a 17-game stretch that runs through July 28. "We just figured we'd do it now."
WALK-OFFS
1. Yankees INF DJ LeMahieu has hit four homers against the Rays this season, including one on Tuesday.
2. Rays LF Tommy Pham has struck out 21 times in 63 at-bats versus the Yankees this year after fanning on four occasions in Tuesday's contest.
3. New York acquired OF Terrance Gore - a pinch-running specialist - from Kansas City for cash considerations and optioned him to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.