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May 24-25: Marlins at Rays Citrus Series Preview

A 2-game Citrus Series begins tonight in St. Petersburg.

Miami Marlins starting pitcher Pablo Lopez (49) checks as Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Joey Wendle (18) leads off of first base during the first inning of a game at Tropicana Field. Photo by Mary Holt/USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Marlins lost their weekend series against the Atlanta Braves, but they finally won a one-run ballgame on Sunday. As disappointing as they’ve been, Miami is still bunched up in the middle of the NL East with Atlanta and Philadelphia.

The Rays are coming off a tough loss of their own, getting walked-off by the Orioles in the 11th inning of Sunday’s game. The Marlins will play a quick two games in St. Petersburg, take Thursday off, then play the Braves in Atlanta this weekend.

The series preview will give you all the details:

  • Schedule, Watch, Listen
  • Probable Pitchers
  • Recent Lineups
  • What To Watch For
  • Poll: How Will This Series Play Out?

Schedule, Watch, Listen

Tuesday, May 24 at 6:40 pm

Wednesday, May 25 at 6:40 pm

  • TV broadcast for both games: Bally Sports Florida
  • Radio broadcast for both games: 940 AM WINZ, WAQI 710

Probable Pitchers

Tuesday: RHP Pablo López vs. LHP Shane McClanahan

  • López: 1.57 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 27.0 K%, 21.3 HardContact% in 46.0 IP
  • McClanahan: 2.33 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 36.7 K%, 20.3 HardContact% in 46.1 IP

Wednesday: RHP Cody Poteet vs. RHP Drew Rasmussen

  • Poteet: 0.78 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 22.4 K%, 26.2 HardContact% in 23.0 IP
  • Rasmussen: 2.33 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 22.4 K%, 28.5 HardContact% in 38.2 IP

Projected Lineups

Marlins most recent lineup: Chisholm Jr. (2B), Aguilar (1B), Cooper (DH), Garcia (RF), Anderson (3B), Sanchez (CF), De La Cruz (LF), Gonzalez (SS), Stallings (C).
Marlins recent lineups.
Roster Resource / FanGraphs
Rays most recent lineup: Kiermaier (CF), Arozarena (LF), Choi (1B), Ramirez (DH), Brujan (2B), Paredes (3B), Phillips (RF), Zunino (C), Walls (SS).
Rays recent lineups.
Roster Resource / FanGraphs

What to watch for on...

Tuesday: Battle of the aces.

  • NL ERA leader Pablo López matches up against Rays lefty Shane McClanahan.
  • We know how great López is, so let’s give McClanahan some love. His 36.7% strikeout rate is the second-highest among all qualified starting pitchers. He doesn’t have one pitch he favors heavily in two-strike counts, splitting evenly between his curveball, changeup, and slider. All three of these pitches generate frequent whiffs and induce soft, ground ball contact.

Wednesday: Will the young studs be healthy?

  • Marlins’ Jazz Chisholm Jr. left Sunday’s game after just two innings with left hamstring tightness.
  • Rays’ Wander Franco has been sidelined with leg injuries over the past few days.

Poll

May 24-25: How will the Citrus Series play out?

This poll is closed

  • 12%
    Marlins sweep, 2-0
    (1 vote)
  • 37%
    Tie, 1 win apiece
    (3 votes)
  • 50%
    Rays sweep, 2-0
    (4 votes)
8 votes total Vote Now