T.M. Selection: Tampa Bay Rays.

I like the Tampa Bay Rays to win this game against the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. The Rays have lost 2 games in a row now, both against the Twins losing the 1st 2 games of this series, but they had just swept the Cardinals in their previous series and their pitching has been good lately. I think they have a much better pitching matchup in this game and I expect them to win this game avoiding the sweep here. Their offense hasn't been great lately but it has really picked up in this series. They lost the 1st game 9-4 but jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the previous game. They still lost that game 6-5 but still made a bit of a comeback after coughing up the lead and going down by a few runs. I expect their offense to be better here since their bats have been getting hot and I think their pitching will keep them in this game. Jeffrey Springs (2-2, 1.62 ERA) is up for the Rays here and he has been having a great year so far. He has been great in his appearances as a reliever which is what he started the year as but in his previous 6 appearances he has been a starter and has looked really good in those games too. His 1st 2 starts were a bit shaky as he only went a little over 4 innings in both of those but only gave up 3 runs total, all 3 coming in 1 game, and his 4 most recent starts have all been great with him going at least 5 innings and not giving up more than 2 runs in any starts. The Twins have Cole Sands (0-2, 8.49 ERA) here and he hasn't looked great this year in his 1st year in the league. He has made 4 appearances, his 1st 2 as a reliever where he gave up 3 runs total in 4 inning, and his 2 most recent were as a starter where he gave up 4 runs in both starts and only pitched in a little under 8 innings. He has had a rough entry into the MLB and I think that is going to continue for him here. I like the Rays to win this game.

T.M. Prediction: 6-2 Rays.