White Sox-Rays matchups

[October 01, 2008]  (AP)  Schedule (All times EDT):  Game 1, Thursday, at Tampa Bay (2:37 p.m.); Game 2, Friday, at Tampa Bay (6:07 p.m.); Game 3, Sunday, at Chicago (TBA); x-Game 4, Monday, Oct. 6, at Chicago (TBA); x-Game 5, Wednesday, Oct. 8, at Tampa Bay (TBA). (All games on TBS).

x-if necessary.

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Season series: Tampa Bay won 6-4.

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Projected lineups

White Sox: SS Orlando Cabrera (.281, 8 HRs, 57 RBIs), LF Dewayne Wise (.248, 6, 18), RF Jermaine Dye (.292, 34, 96), DH Jim Thome (.245, 34, 90), 1B Paul Konerko (.240, 22, 62), CF Ken Griffey Jr. (.260, 3, 18 after July 31 trade from Cincinnati; .249, 18, 71 overall), 2B Alexei Ramirez (.290, 21, 77), C A.J. Pierzynski (.281, 13, 60), 3B Juan Uribe (.247, 7, 40).

Rays: 2B Akinori Iwamura (.274, 6, 48), CF B.J. Upton (.273, 9, 67), 1B Carlos Pena (.247, 31, 102), 3B Evan Longoria (.272, 27, 85), DH Cliff Floyd (.268, 11, 39), C Dioner Navarro (.295, 7, 54), LF Carl Crawford (.273, 8, 57), RF Gabe Gross (.242, 13, 38), SS Jason Bartlett (.286, 1, 37).

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Projected rotations

White Sox: RH Javier Vazquez (12-16, 4.67 ERA), LH Mark Buehrle (15-12, 3.79), RH Gavin Floyd (17-8, 3.84), LH John Danks (12-9, 3.32).

Rays: RH James Shields (14-8, 3.56), LH Scott Kazmir (12-8, 3.49), RH Matt Garza (11-9, 3.70), RH Andy Sonnanstine (13-9, 4.38).

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Relievers

White Sox: RH Bobby Jenks (3-1, 2.64, 30/34 saves), LH Matt Thornton (5-3, 2.67, team-high 74 appearances), RH Octavio Dotel (4-4, 3.76), LH Boone Logan (2-3, 5.95), RH Scott Linebrink (2-2, 3.69).

Rays: RH Troy Percival (2-1, 4.53, 28/32 saves, hampered by injuries second half of season), RH Grant Balfour (6-2, 1.54, 82 strikeouts in 58 1-3 innings), LH J.P. Howell (6-1, 2.22), LH Trever Miller (2-0, 4.15), RH Chad Bradford (4-3, 2.12), LH David Price (0-0, 1.93), RH Dan Wheeler (5-6, 3.12, 13/18 saves), RH Jason Hammel (4-4, 4.60).

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Matchups

Tampa Bay won five of the final six meetings in the regular season, winning the last three of a four-game series at Tropicana Field from May 29 to June 1 and the first two of a three-game set at Chicago in August. ... Danks, who pitched eight innings of two-hit ball on short rest Tuesday night for a 1-0 win over Minnesota in an AL Central tiebreaker, also had success against Tampa Bay this year. He was 2-1 with a 1.86 ERA in 19 1-3 innings over three starts. He's 3-0 with a 2.50 ERA in three career starts at Tropicana Field. ... Longoria, the front-runner for AL Rookie of the Year, hit .120 with no homers and one RBI in seven games against Chicago. Upton batted .364 with four RBIs, playing in each game of the season series. ... Look for upbeat manager Joe Maddon to go to Balfour out of the bullpen. The right-hander didn't allow an earned run in five games (4 1-3 innings) against the White Sox this season. ... The White Sox and crosstown Cubs are in the postseason together for the first time since 1906. ... Crawford is back in the lineup and could put even more pressure on Pierzynski, who threw out just 11 of 107 would-be base stealers this year. Crawford had 25 of Tampa Bay's major league-best 142 stolen bases. ... Thome hit three of Chicago's 12 homers against the Rays this year. He has 15 homers, 40 RBIs and a .325 batting average in 57 career games versus Tampa Bay.

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Big picture

White Sox: Chicago (89-74) won the AL Central despite late injuries to surprising star Carlos Quentin, who was leading the AL in homers when he broke his right wrist by hitting it on his bat in frustration Sept. 1, and third baseman Joe Crede, who had back problems. Neither is expected to return for the playoffs. ... After a five-game losing streak, the White Sox became the first team in major league history to win its final three regular-season games against three different opponents, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. ... Thome and Griffey, both 38, are back in the postseason after long absences. Thome hadn't been to the playoffs since 2001 with Cleveland, and Griffey will be making his first postseason appearance since 1997 with Seattle. ... After Chicago lost three of four at Tampa Bay earlier this season, manager Ozzie Guillen went on a rant, saying general manager Ken Williams had to make changes if the team expected to keep winning. The two quickly cleared the air. ... Guillen led Chicago to the 2005 World Series title, its first in 88 years.

Rays: Tampa Bay, which had never won more than 70 games in a season before this year, was in contention for the best record in the majors until the final weekend. ... The Rays (97-65) joined the 1991 Braves as the only teams to make the playoffs a year after finishing with the worst record in the majors. They are the second AL team, 11th overall, to earn a postseason berth a year after finishing in last place. The 1991 Twins were the other AL team. ... While young, emerging stars such as Longoria, Crawford, Kazmir and Upton are playoff newcomers, the Rays have eight players with postseason experience: Floyd, Bartlett, Balfour, Hinske, Miller, Percival, Wheeler and Bradford. A ninth, Iwamura, has participated in the Japanese League playoffs. Floyd is in the postseason for the third straight year. He was with the Mets in 2006 and Cubs in 2007. ... The Rays won the AL East despite playing a significant number of games with Longoria, Crawford and Percival on the disabled list late in the season. Longoria missed five weeks after breaking his right wrist Aug. 7. Crawford hasn't played in the field since Aug. 9 when he was sidelined with a tendon injury to his right middle finger that required surgery. He is expected back in the lineup for Game 1. A two-time All-Star and four-time AL stolen base champion, Crawford's return could spark the Rays on offense and defense.

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Watch for...

• Tricks at the Trop. Tropicana Field, with its catwalks and artificial turf, hosts its first playoff games. Tampa Bay prospered in the wacky dome, compiling the best home record (57-24) in the majors. A tricky bounce or two could turn a postseason series.

• Tired or tested? The White Sox had to win their last three games to win the division crown. Buehrle, Floyd, Vazquez and Danks each pitched on three days' rest over Chicago's final four games. Will the AL Central champs carry that never-say-die persona into the playoffs or will they be fatigued after a tense final week of the season?

• Big stick. Pena was the AL Comeback Player of the Year in 2007 with 46 homers and 121 RBIs. He got off to a slow start this season but has raised his play since the All-Star break, hitting 17 homers and providing clutch hits. A patient hitter, he drew nine walks with the bases loaded, most in the majors since 1957.

• Powerball. Chicago hit 12 of its major league-high 235 homers against Tampa Bay this season. The White Sox have 42 homers in their last 21 home games. They hit four or more long balls in a big league-best 11 games this season, including six times in August. The Rays finished with 180 homers, tying for ninth in the majors. If the series turns into a slugfest, Chicago should have an advantage.

[Associated Press]

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