The Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers face off on Monday evening in an extra baseball game following the conclusion of the 2013 MLB season. Call it Game 163 as both teams battle for the final playoff spot in the A.L. Wild Card. Who is going to win? That's the million dollar question. Here are predictions for this game as it's Rays vs. Rangers, one more time in 2013.
If pitching wins ball games, then this game should be extremely close. There are a few factors leading up to the decision of who will win this game.
First, there's momentum. It clearly depends which sport you play, but once a team starts getting hot as a whole, it's difficult to slow them down. If predictions are based on momentum, then the Rangers have the advantage. They are winners of seven straight games, needing every victory in the past week to remain close enough to push for the one-game playoff.
If you base it off performance throughout the entire season, the Rays have to be the favorite. Tampa Bay got off to a slow start, but they played better baseball down the stretch, possessing first place late in the season. However, the Boston Red Sox proved too strong in September. The Rangers went the opposite direction, especially following Nelson Cruz's suspension. They could not score runs and, at one point, they lost seven straight games. They went from first in the A.L. West to finding themselves outside of the A.L. Wild Card. The Rangers have to be demoralized, while the Rays's youngsters believe they can pull out the victory.
The Rangers took four out of seven games from the Rays, so they know they can beat the team. However, they have never faced the Rays' true ace, David Price in 2013. If experience is the key, then surprisingly, the Rays have the advantage.
Price, at age 28, is one of the oldest Rays. After missing almost two months of baseball, Price was almost unstoppable. In 17 starts, following his DL stint, Price went 8-4 with a 2.57 ERA, allowing more than three earned runs in just three of those starts. Price has been dominant and trustworthy in big time moments. The Rangers will send a trustworthy Martin Perez to the mouth, but again, this is his first season in the majors.
Like Price, Perez is a lefty and a prized possession of his organization. He has also never faced the Rays in 2013. He went 10-5 in 19 starts, posting a 3.55 ERA in 119 innings pitched. Perez closed out the season 2-2 in five starts in September. He allowed three earned runs against the Houston Astros over seven innings pitched.
At the end of the day, expect the Rays to take this ball game. Evan Longoria, Wil Myers, James Loney and Joe Maddon have been a force all season long. The Rangers might get Nelson Cruz back, but who knows what he will be able to produce. The Rangers have defeated weaker foes at the conclusion of the season and the Rays have been a strong team all season long.
Final Score: 5-3, Rays win the A.L. Wild Card Game