Gameday Preview: Manuel Margot Back in Lineup for Rays vs. Jays; Lineups, Pregame Chatter

The Tampa Bay Rays are back home after a long and successful road trip, and they'll also have red-hot Manuel Margot back in the lineup after missing two games with a hamstring injury. Here's how to watch the game, with starting lineups, stats and a load of newsy nuggets.

Tom Brew | May 13, 2022

Gameday Preview: Manuel Margot Back in Lineup for Rays vs. Jays; Lineups, Pregame Chatter /

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Manuel Margot has had one hot bat lately, but he's also had a minor hamstring issue flare up. But after missing the final two games of the West Coast trip and getting more treatment on Thursday's off day, he's back in the lineup on Friday night when the Rays take on the Toronto Blue Jays.

"I feel good. (Thursday) on the off day, I came in for some treatment, and (Friday) I feel a lot better,'' Margot said Friday through interpreter Manny Navarro. "It was difficult to watch and not be a part of it. It's part of the game. (During the no-hitter) I was out pushing my teammates for support, and it was tough to watch when it was one-sided. With the treatment I've had, I'm just going to continue to do what I do.''

Margot played the first nine days of the month and was 15-for-31 at the plate with three home runs and 13 RBIs. He was the American League's Player of the Week as well.

Hamstring injuries can be tricky, so Rays manager Kevin Cash gave him a couple of days off, even though was feeling well enough to play if he had to. Cash is confident that he's good to go now, and he was happy to pencil him into the order on Friday night, batting third at designated hitter.

''He ran a little bit, and he feels like he can manage it well enough,'' Cash said. "He wants to play, and we want him to play the way he's been swinging the bat. Hopefully the work load (at designated hitter) will help in keeping him off his feet, but hitting like he is, he'll have to manage it running the bases.''

They'll need his bat in the series opener with Toronto, with standout pitcher Kevin Gausman on the mound. Here's how to watch the game, with TV information and lineups, plus the usual dose of newsy nuggets.

Here's how to watch Friday's game, with gametime and TV information, the starting lineups, bios and, of course, our great daily dose of newsy nuggets.

How to watch Blue Jays at Rays

Who: Toronto Blue Jays (17-15) at Tampa Bay Rays (19-13)
When: 7:10 p.m. ET, Friday, May 13
Where: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Fla.
TV: Bally Sports Sun
Stream: Fubo.tv CLICK HERE
Announcers: Dewayne Staats (play-by-play), Brian Anderson (color commentary) and Tricia Whitaker (in-game reporter).
Radio: WDAE 95.3 FM; SiriusXM Channel 180
Announcers: Andy Freed and Dave Wills.
Latest Line: Toronto is favored at minus-125 on the money line according to the SISportsbook.com website opening line as of Friday afternoon. It's the first time the Rays have been underdogs at home all season. The Rays are plus-105. The over/under is 6.5.

Blue Jays-Rays history

Blue Jays vs Rays all-time series history: Tampa Bay holds a 230-191 edge in the series with their AL East rival dating back to 1998. The Rays are 130-86 in St. Petersburg, tops for win against any other opponent at Tropicana Field. Last year, Tampa Bay went 18-8 and won the season series for the sixth time in seven years. They have met in the playoffs just once, when the Rays swept a first-round series 2-0 in 2020.

Blue Jays-Rays most recent game

Yankees 5, Blue Jays 3: Toronto pitcher Jose Berrios gave up a three-run homer and two-run single to Gleyber Torres in a 5-3 loss on Wednesday, the Blue Jays' fourth straight defeat. The Blue Jays went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
Rays 4, Angels 2: The Rays got seven scoreless innings from starter Shane McClanahan on Wednesday, and he allowed just three hits in his showdown with reigning AL MVP Shohei Ohtani. McClanahan left with a lead, but closer Andrew Kittredge couldn't hold it. But the Rays won in 10 innings to finish their West Coast trip with a 7-3 record. For the complete game story, CLICK HERE

Projected starting pitchers

Blue Jays right-hander Kevin Gausman: Kevin Gausman has been one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball the first month-plus of the season. He is 3-1 with a 2.13 earned run average and has 46 strikeouts and just one walk. He also hasn't allowed a home run yet this season. He only loss came on April 14 to the Yankees when the Blue Jays got shut out.
Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen: Drew Rasmussen has been sensational in his last three starts for the Rays, allowed just two earned runs total in 16 innings, and picking up two victories against the Seattle Mariners, his boyhood team, and the Oakland A's. He faced Toronto three times last year, allowing just two runs in 12 innings.

Projected lineups

Blue Jays lineup: George Springer CF, Bo Bichette 2B, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B, Teoscar Hernandez RF, Alejandro Kirk DH, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. LF, Matt Chapman 3B, Zack Collins C, Santiago Espinal 2B, Kevin Gausman P.
Rays lineup: Manuel Margot DH, Wander Franco SS, Harold Ramirez RF, Brandon Lowe 2B, Randy Arozarena LF, Ji-Man Choi 1B, Kevin Kiermaier CF, Taylor Walls 3B, Drew Rasmussen P.

Newsy nuggets

Nugget No. 1: There's a lot of Toronto flavor in Tampa Bay this weekend. On Thursday night, there was an NHL playoff game in Tampa between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning — the Lightning won in overtime — and this weekend at Tropicana Field, the Rays and Blue Jays hook up for three games. The Rays were off on Thursday, so they took a crowd of about 25 people over to the hockey game, including around 15 players. "It was a great time, and a great win for the Lightning,'' said Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier, who spearheaded the outing.
Nugget No. 2: The Rays are glad to be home after a success 10-game road trip where they went 7-3 in a tough stretch where they played 10 games in 10 days. "It's good to be back home. It was a long trip with no off days in there, but I thought the guys played really, really well. It thought was big to find a way to get a win on that last day. It makes it feel better on a five-hour flight, and it's nice to be home for this big weekend series with the Blue Jays.''
Nugget No. 3: The Rays bullpen leads the majors with 153.1 innings pitched, and they have been overworked at times, but they should be in great shape heading into weekend. Tampa Bay starter Shane McClanahan pitched seven innings on Wednesday and they had an off day on Thursday, so everyone should be ready to go. ''Any time you get a performance like that from Shane with an off day, you feel like you're in a good spot,'' Cash said before the game. "We check on them, but they all should be ready to go.''
Nugget No. 4: Blue Jays Manager Charlie Montoyo spent four seasons on Kevin Cash’s coaching staff before being hired by Toronto on Oct 25, 2018. He was the Rays bench coach in 2018 and the third base coach for the previous three seasons. He joined the Rays organization on Oct 31, 1996 and managed at every level in the system. His overall managing record in 18 seasons was 1,266-1,142 (.526), and his teams advanced to the postseason nine times. In eight seasons with Triple-A Durham, he guided the Bulls to seven International League South Division titles, a league-record six trips to the IL Finals and two Governors’ Cup championships.

Watch Kevin Cash's pregame interview