Gameday Preview: How to Watch Friday Night's Rays-Mariners Game on AppleTV-Plus Only

The Tampa Bay Rays get a second shot at Logan Gilbert on Friday night when they take on. the Seattle Mariners. He's the AL Pitcher or the month for April and has a 4-0 record and 0.64 ERA. Here's how to watch, which is AppleTV-plus only.

SEATTLE, Wash. — The Tampa Bay Rays have won the first four games of their West Coast swing after beating Seattle 4-3 on Thursday night. They'll try to do it again on Friday, but it won't be easy.

Logan Gilbert, a tough 24-year-old right-handed from Apopka, Fla., is on the mound for Seattle, and he's been practically unhittable this season. He's 4-0 so far with an 0.64 ERA. He's allowed only two runs all year

The Rays are using an ''opener'' on Friday, with Matt Wisler getting the call and Josh Fleming expected to get bulk innings.

The game can be seen on AppleTV-Plus only tonight. It's free to watch, but you do need to have an Apple ID.

Here's what you need to know from Apple:

• The game is available to watch for free only on Apple TV+.  
• On Apple Music, fans can find exclusive playlists of batters’ walk-up songs from teams featured in this week’s “Friday Night Baseball” games —the Chicago White Sox, the Boston Red Sox, the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Seattle Mariners — as well as a collection of classic songs celebrating baseball.
• Scheduled games are available to anyone with internet access, for free, only on Apple TV+. Users can find step-by-step instructions to access “Friday Night Baseball” across devices.
• Fans can access “Friday Night Baseball” games and additional content, including new exclusive programs such as “Countdown to First Pitch” for a preview of this week’s matchups, and “MLB Daily Recap,” only in the Apple TV app.
• “Friday Night Baseball” games will be available to anyone with internet access across devices where Apple TV+ can be found, including on the Apple TV app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV 4K and HD, and on tv.apple.com, along with smart TVs, gaming consoles, and cable set-top boxes. “Friday Night Baseball” will be available on Apple TV+ in the United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom, and for a limited time, without the need for a subscription.

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. 

Editor's Note: I'm posting this early so you can plan accordingly with AppleTV-Plus. I will add the lineups and pregame notes a few hours before the game.

How to watch Rays at Mariners

• Who: Tampa Bay Rays (16-10) at Seattle Mariners (12-14)
• When: 9:40 p.m. ET, Friday, May 6
• Where: T-Mobile Park, Seattle, Wash.
• TV: AppleTV-Plus only. To watch online, CLICK HERE
• Stream: AppleTV-Plus only
• Announcers: Stephen Nelson (play-by-play), Cliff Floyd and Katie Nolan (color commentary) and Jen Mueller (in-game reporter).
• Radio: WDAE 95.3 FM; SiriusXM Channel 187 (Mariners broadcast; Rays online only)
• Announcers: Andy Freed and Dave Wills.
• Latest Line: Seattle is favored at minus-133 on the money line according to the SISportsbook.com website opening line as of Tuesday afternoon. The Rays are plus-110. The over/under is 6.5, the lowest number of the season for the fourth night in a row.

Rays-Mariners history

• Rays vs. Mariners all-time series history: Seattle holds a 108-82 edge in the series dating back to 1998. The Rays are just 41-56 in Seattle. Last year, Tampa Bay went 1-6 against Seattle, and lost all four games in the Pacific Northwest.  The Rays won two of three games in St. Petursburg last week. 

Rays-Mariners most recent game

• Rays 4, Mariners 3: Mike Zunino hit a huge three-run homer against reigning Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray, and Shane McClanahan won the pitcher's duel for Tampa Bay in a 4-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday night in Seattle. For the complete game story, CLICK HERE

Projected starting pitchers

• Rays right-hander Matt Wisler: Friday is an ''opener'' night for Tampa Bay, with Matt Wisler getting the call first. He is 1-0 this season with a 1.50 ERA. He has pitched 11 innings so far, and given up just two earned runs, one on Opening Day on April 8 to Baltimore, and one on April 23 against Boston in the 10th inning of a game where six Rays pitchers had a no-hitter through nine. Wisler gave up that one run, but got the win anyway when Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the innings
• Mariners right-hander Logan Gilbert: Logan Gilbert was MLB's Pitcher of the Month in April. He made four starts that month, getting three wins and allowing just one earned run, for a nifty 0.40 ERA. He started last Sunday in Miami and got his fourth win, allowing just one earned run in 5 2/3 innings in a 7-3. win. He beat Tampa Bay five days earlier, pitching 5 2/3 scoreless innings, and allowing just two hits. The 24-year-old righty is from Apopka, Fla.

Projected lineups

• Rays lineup: Yandy Diaz 1B, Wander Franco SS, Randy Arozarena DH, Brandon Lowe 2B, Harold Ramirez LF, Kevin Kiermaier CF, Taylor Walls 3B, Francisco Mejia C, Brett Phillips RF, Matt Wisler P.
• Mariners lineup: Adam Frazier 2B, Ty France 1B, J.P. Crawford SS, Eugenio Suarez 3B, Jesse Winker LF, Abraham Toro DH, Julio Rodriguez CF, Dylan Moore RF, Murphy C, Logan Gilbert P.

Newsy nuggets

• Nugget No. 1: There's been a lineup change. Randy Arozarena is DH'ing Friday night, and Harold Ramirez is going to play left field. Arozarena came to Cash earlier in the day and said he had some minor knee soreness after a little tweak in the Wednesday game at Oakland. It was good enough to play left field Thursday night, but a day off of his left knee isn't a bad thing. 
• Nugget No. 2: Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi, who's been on the disabled list with an elbow injury, is scheduled to re-join the team this weekend in Seattle. He's eligible to come off the injured list on Sunday. He's been missed. He was hitting .357 with two homers and 10 RBIs when he went down.
• Nugget No. 3: The Rays' coaching staff, many of whom who have been dealing with COVID issues, is about be back at full strength. Pitching coach Kyle Snyder and bench coach Matt Quatraro returned to the team prior to Thursday night's series opener in Seattle, and bullpen coach Stan Boroski and field coordinator Paul Hoover will be back for Saturday's game. 
• Nugget No. 4: Thanks to this four-game winning streak to start this 10-game, 10-day road trip, the Rays are now 7-3 on the road this season. That's the best winning percentage in the American League, and second in all of baseball to the New York Mets. Counting the two wins in Chicago to end the series with the Cubs, the Rays have won six straight on the road and have outscored opponents 37-18. That's impressive. 
• BONUS NUGGET: Yes, the Rays are wearing their navy blue jerseys again on Friday night. They've worn them every game on this trip, and they're going to continue to wear them as long as they keep winning.