San Diego Padres vs. Tampa Bay Rays: Series opener preview

The San Diego Padres host the Tampa Bay Rays for a three-game interleague series starting on Monday, August 12. Here’s what to expect in the series opener, as well as how you can watch the Padres vs. Rays live, on TV and online.

Coming off their first series win since the All-Star break, the San Diego Padres need to turn the corner quickly as they face a tough obstacle ahead. The Tampa Bay Rays are coming to town, and that team is no joke.

The Rays sit at 69-50, 8.5 games back from the American League East leaders but in possession of a wild card spot. They’re currently riding a three-game winning streak having gone 8-2 in their last 10.

The team has a very stout defense, owing their +99 run differential to the lowest runs allowed in the AL and second-lowest in the MLB at 459. Only the Los Angeles Dodgers have less runs against.

Offensively, the Rays are essentially the league-average team. They rank 9th in hits, 12th in batting average at .254., 17th in runs scored, and 18th in home runs.

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Their entire offense goes through second-year starter Austin Meadows, who boasts a .285/.357/.527 slash line with 19 home runs and 56 RBIs on the season. He’s cooled off a bit as the season’s gone on, hitting .354 through May but .243 through the end of July.

It looks like the Rays will opt for a bullpen day as Diego Castillo (2-6) is slated to start. He could also serve as the Rays’ opener, considering he hasn’t gone more than 2.0 innings pitched all season long.

The second-year starter is trying to build off his rookie campaign that saw a 4-2 record and 0.953 WHIP, but he’s struggling to improve.

Castillo is sporting a 3.50 ERA and 1.351 WHIP with 49 strikeouts through 43.2 innings pitched. He’s done well recently, not allowing a run to score in his last seven appearances; that’s totaled up to five innings pitched.

Meanwhile, Joey Lucchesi will take the mound for the Padres. He’s been pretty average this season, owning a 4.19 ERA and 1.177 WHIP.

He’s coming off a two-run outing against the Seattle Mariners but had given up four runs the game before against the Dodgers. Going deep into games has been an issue for him all season long.

The second-year pitcher has hit the 7.0 IP mark only three times this season; he’s also thrown only three scoreless outings thus far. Lucchesi is hovering around where he stood last season, and the Padres were certainly hoping to see more progress than he’s shown.

That said, he still has over a month and a half to state his case as to why he should be a part of this team moving forward.

Here’s how you can watch the Padres vs. Rays series opener live, on TV or via live stream:

Date: Monday, August 12
First Pitch: 7:10 PM PT/10:10 PM ET
Location: San Diego, CA
Stadium: Petco Park
Pitchers:  Joey Lucchesi (7-6) vs. Diego Castillo (0-2)
Radio Station: KWFN 97.3 (Padres), WDAE 95.3 (Rays)
TV Channel: MLB Network (national), Fox Sports San Diego (Padres), Fox Sports Sun (Rays)
Live Stream: MLB.tv

For complete coverage of the San Diego Padres 2019 season, be sure to follow Friars on Base all season long.