Gameday Preview (Sunday): Rasmussen, Ryan Square Off in Battle of Aces

Drew Rasmussen and Joe Ryan both have ERA's under 3.00 this season, and the two aces square off on Sunday with the Tampa Bay Rays take on the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. Here are the batting orders and a lot of great newsy nuggets.

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Drew Rasmussen takes on the Minnesota Twins on Sunday at Target Field. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The Tampa Bay Rays have suffered two disappointing losses so far in Minnesota, and they turn to ace Drew Rasmussen in the series finale on Sunday. But the Twins are countering with an ace of their own in Joe Ryan, a former Rays farmhand.

The pair are two of the best right-handers in the game. Rasmussen is 7-5 with a 2.78 earned run average and a 1.00 WHIP. Ryan, who was drafted by the Rays in the 2018 MLB Draft and went to the Twins in a 2021 trade for Nelson Cruz, has even better numbers. He's 8-4 with a 2.75 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. That's the second-best WHIP in all of baseball, behind only Detroit's Tarik Skubal, who's at 0.83.

Ramussen might have had his best start of the season against the Twins on May 28 in Tampa. He pitched six scoreless innings and allowed just two hits in the Rays' 5-1 win. Ryan beat the Rays 4-2 a day earlier, allowing just one run in six innings.

Here's how to watch Sunday's game:

How to watch Rays-Twins

• Who: Tampa Bay Rays (48-41) at Minnesota Twins (43-46)
• When: Sunday, July 6 at 2:10 p.m. ET
• Where: Target Field, Minneapolis, Minn.
• TV: FanDuel Sports Sun
• Radio: WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM, WQBN 106.7/1300 AM (Spanish)
• Betting information: The Twins are favored on the money line at HardRockBet.com at minus-130, and the Rays' money line odds are at plus-110. On the run line, you can bet the Twins minus-1.5 at plus-160 odds, and the Rays plus-1.5 runs at minus-210 odds. The over/under is 8.5 runs.

Here are the starting lineups for both teams:

Rays batting order

1. Yandy Diaz DH
2. Brandon Lowe 2B
3. Junior Caminero 3B
4. Jonathan Aranda 1B
5. Jake Mangum LF
6. Josh Lowe RF
7. Taylor Walls SS
8. Chandler Simpson CF
9. Matt Thaiss C

Twins batting order

1. Byron Buxton CF
2. Willi Castro LF
3. Trevor Larnach RF
4. Carlos Correa SS
5. Brooks Lee 2B
6. Matt Wallner DH
7. Royce Lewis 3B
8. Kody Clemens1B
9. Christian Vasquez C

Rays newsy nuggets

• BRANDON LOWE GOES FOR RECORD: Tampa Bay second baseman Brandon Lowe has hit safety in 20 straight games, tied with teammate Yandy Diaz for the longest streak in team history. He can break that record on Sunday. He's had som success vs. Joe Ryan, going 3-for-8 in career matchups. Lowe is also celebrating his 31st birthday on Sunday.

• CLOSE GAMES AT TARGET: Each of the Rays last six games at Target Field have been decided in the final at-bat, their longest streak at any ballpark, home or away, in franchise history. They are 3-3 during the streak, which began with a 5-4 win on Sept. 13, 2023 when Randy Arozarena hit a go-ahead solo homer in the ninth inning. The Rays and Twins have played seven consecutive one-run games in this ballpark, matching Aug. 3-20, 2018 at Tropicana Field for their longest streak at any venue. Four of the Rays last five games have been decided in the final at-bat after they went 18 straight games without a last at-bat win or loss from June 10-29.

• RASMUSSEN SHINES IN DAY GAMES: For pitchers with a minimum of 125 innings pitched, Drew Rasmussen’s 2.07 career ERA in day games is third-lowest among active pitchers, trailing Cleveland's Emmanuel Clase (1.73) and Texas' Jacob deGrom (2.01). Rasmussen has a 2.37 ERA in day games this season, eighth among AL pitchers with a minimum of 35 innings pitched. His career daytime ERA is 1.28 runs lower than his mark in night games (3.25).

Related Rays stories

• BOYLE BACK WITH RAYS: Joe Boyle has a 1.85 earned run average at Triple-A Durham, and in his one start with the Tampa Bay Rays in April, he p[itched five no-hit innings against Atlanta. The Rays recalled the 25-year-old right-hander on Sunday, and he joined the team in Minnesota. CLICK HERE

• RAYS' HA-SEONG KIM HAS DEBUT CUT SHORT BY INJURY: Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Ha-Seong Kim finally got to join the team in their series opener against the Minnesota Twins after months of rehabbing a shoulder injury. In the top of the seventh inning, his debut took a scary turn. CLICK HERE

• TWINS RELIEVEFRS BAFFLING RAYS: The Minnesota Twins being down three starters didn't stop their available arms from staving off a potent Tampa Bay Rays offense en route to a series victory on Saturday. CLICK HERE