How to Watch Friday's Rays Game Against White Sox on Apple TV+
CHICAGO, Ill. — For the first time all season, there is no local television option for Friday night's game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox. Apple TV+ has exclusive national rights to several Friday night games, and this is one of them.
It is free to watch, but it does take some preparation to be able watch it, either on a smart TV or any devices like a laptop, tablet or phone. The game starts at 7:10 p.m. ET, or 6:10 p.m. Central time in Chicago.
All you need is an Apple ID, and if you have an iPhone or a Mac computer, you already have one. To access “Friday Night Baseball” games on Apple TV+, just launch the Apple TV app and select the game directly from there, or from the MLB.TV app, tap on Apple TV+ Game to be redirected to the Apple TV app.
The third option is to go directly to https://tv.apple.com/ and log in with or create an Apple ID.
You need to have an Apple ID to watch, but you don't need to enter any payment information to set it up. And aside from the U.S., games on Apple TV+ also are available in Canada, Australia, Brazil, Great Britain, Japan, Korea and Mexico.
Here's all the pregame details you need on Friday night's game between the Rays and the White Sox
How to watch Rays at White Sox
- Who: Tampa Bay Rays (4-3) at Chicago White Sox
- When: 7:10 p.m. ET, Friday, April 15
- Where: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago, Ill.
- TV: Apple TV+
- Stream: Apple TV app
- Announcers: Melanie Newman (play-by-play), Chris Young and Hannah Keyser (analysts) and Brooke Fletcher (reporter)
- Radio: WDAE 95.3 FM; SiriusXM Channel 181 (White Sox broadcast, Rays broadcast online only on SiriusXM.com)
- Announcers: Andy Freed and Dave Wills.
- Latest Line: Chicago is favored at minus-133 on the money line according to the SISportsbook.com website opening line as of Friday morning morning. Tampa Bay is plus-110. The over/under is 8.
Rays-White Sox history
- Rays vs. White Sox all-time series history: Chicago holds a 91-76 edge over Tampa Bay in the regular season series dating back to 1998. Chicago is 47-35 at home. The season series went 3-3 a year ago, with the home team going 2-1. The two teams have met in the playoffs once, in the Rays' first-ever postseason series in 2008. The Rays won 3-1, winning the first two games at home before losing Game 3 in Chicago and clinching in Game 4.
- Athletics vs. Rays last meeting: The last meeting was on Aug. 9, 2021, with the Rays winning 9-0 in St. Petersburg, Fla. It was an ''opener'' day for the Rays, and their five pitchers combined for a seven-hit shutout.
Rays-White Sox most recent games
- Rays' last game: Tampa Bay lost to Oakland 6-3 on Thursday, finishing the four-game series with a 1-3 mark. Brandon Lowe homered for the Rays, but some sloppy play early did in the Rays, allowing two unearned runs. Full game story, CLICK HERE
- White Sox last game: Chicago lost to Seattle 5-1 on Thursday, snapping a four-game winning streak. The White Sox had just four hits — shortstop Tim Anderson had two of them — and Jimmy Lambert took the loss.
Projected starting pitchers
- Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen: Drew Rasmussen pitched well in his first start for the Rays, going four innings and allowing two runs. He didn't get the decision in the Rays' 5-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles last Saturday. Rasmussen was an impressive 10-4 with a 2.44 ERA last season for the Rays.
- White Sox right-hander Dylan Cease: Dylan Cease is emerging as one of the better starters in the league, and the White Sox will be relying on him heavily with aces Lucas Giolito and Lance Lynn out. Cease was 13-7 with a 3.81 ERA last year and won his first start of the season last Saturday, allowing just one run and two hits in a 5-2 win at Detroit
Projected lineups
- Rays lineup: Brandon Lowe 2B, Wander Franco SS, Randy Arozarena LF, Ji-Man Choi 1B, Yandy Diaz 3B, Josh Lowe RF, Manuel Margot DH, Kevin Kiermaier CF, Francisco Mejia C. Drew Rasmussen P.
- White Sox lineup: Tim Anderson SS, Luis Robert CF, Jose Abreu 1B, Yasmani Grandal C, Eloy Jiminez LF, Gavin Sheets DH, Leury Garcia 2B, Andrew Vaughn RF, Jake Burger 3B, Dylan Cease P.
Related stories on Apple TV+
- Apple signs Friday night deal with MLB. CLICK HERE
- Apple announces broadcast crews. CLICK HERE
Tom Brew is the publisher of Inside The Rays, and has been with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation network for three years. He is an award-winning writer and editor who has spent most of his four-decade career at the Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has written four books.