Gameday Preview (Sunday): Rays Look to Sweep Blue Jays, Get Back to .500

TAMPA, Fla. — Three times this season, the up-and-down Tampa Bay Rays have fallen five games below .500. They got back to even once before, and hope to do it again on Sunday in the series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Rays have won the first two games, both by 3-1 margins thanks to great starts from Drew Rasmussen and Shane Baz. They'll hope for more of the same from Ryan Pepiot on Sunday. The game starts at 1:40 p.m. ET at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

Pepiot has gone six innings in each of his last three starts, and has given up three runs or less each time. But he's got nothing to show for it, and the Rays haven't won one of his starts since April 26.

The Rays are hoping that changes on Sunday. They're playing well, winning four games in a row to get to 25-26 on the season. They'd like to get back to .500 with their usual resume of pitching and defense, and then take it from there. They've gone a season-high five straight games without making an error.

"I like the run that Pep's been on,'' Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "I feel like every time he takes the ball, he gives us a chance to win. We're doing a lot of really good things right now. I feel like we've played good defense all year, but it's been pretty elite of late.''

Pepiot has gone 17 straight starts of allowing three runs or less dating back to June 21, 2024. It's the fourth-longest streak in team history. Shane McClanahan holds the record with 23 games over parts of the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Drew Rasmussen (19) is second, and Tyler Glasnow (18) is third.

Here are the details on the game:

How to watch Blue Jays-Rays

Who: Toronto Blue Jays (25-26) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (25-26)
When: Sunday, May 25 at 1:40 p.m. ET
Where: Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla.
TV: FanDuel Sports Sun
Radio: WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM, WQBN 106.7/1300 AM (Spanish)
Betting information: The Rays are favored on the money line at Fanduel.com at minus-112, and the Blue Jays' money line odds are plus-104. On the run line, you can bet the Blue Jays minus-1.5 at plus-146 odds, and the Rays plus-1.5 runs at minus-178 odds. The over/under is 9.5 runs.
Weather: The forecast for 1 p.m. ET in Tampa calls for sunny skies with a temperature of 92 degrees. Winds are out of the southwest at 9 mph, blowing out slightly to right-center field.

Here are the starting lineups for both teams:

Blue Jays batting order

Bo Bichette SS
Vladimir Guerrrero Jr. 1B
Anthony Santandar DH
George Springer RF
Addison Barger 3B
Ernie Clement 2B
Jonatan Clase LF
Ali Sanchez C
Myles Straw CF

Rays batting order

Yandy Diaz DH
Josh Lowe RF
Brandon Lowe 2B
Junior Caminero 3B
Jonathan Aranda1B
Chandler Simpson LF
Taylor Walls SS
Kameron Misner CF
Ben Rortvert C

Pitching matchup

CHRIS BASSITT, Toronto: Veteran Chris Bassett has been a pleasant surprise for Blue Jays. He's 4-2 with a 2.83 earned run average and they've won all four of his starts in May. ... He faced the Rays on May 14 and allowed just one earned run in 5 2/3 innings. He did not get the decision in Toronto's 3-1. ... It's the only game in five tries that the Jays have won against the Rays this season. Bassitt, a Toledo, Ohio native, is 36 years and is in his 12th big-league season.

Ryan Pepiot, Tampa Bay: Pepiot is making his 11th start of the season, and he's 2-5 with a 3.99 ERA. ... The 27-year-old from Indianapolis has pitched fairly well, but doesn't have the numbers to show for it. The Rays have lost his last four starts, and he doesn't have a win since April 26 in San Diego. He hasn't won at home since April 9 against the Los Angeles Angels. ... Pepiot was sharp in his last start against Houston, but gave up a three-run homer to Victor Caratini to put him in a hole. The Rays only score 2.4 runs per game in Pepiot starts, fifth-worst in baseball. ... The seven Toronto hitters who's seen Pepiot before are heading a combined 4-for-24 against him, a .167 average.

Newsy nuggets

DELUCA, KIM OFF TO REHAB: Tampa Bay center fielder Jonny DeLuca, who's been out since April 6 with a shoulder injury, is ready to start playing rehab games. Cash said he's to play Monday in Port Charlotte and then play a handful of games in Durham, Shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, acquired in the offseason, has been out all season after shoulder surgery. He's headed to Durham as well, and his stay will be longer. Cash said they are treating it like spring training build-up and they won't rush things. He'll play some at shortstop, some at second base and will DH too.

WINNING WAYS: Tampa Bay's four-game winning streak is the longest active streak in the American League, tied with the Cleveland Guardians. Since Wednesday's win against Houston, all 12 of the Rays' runs have come from home runs. That's a bit of a surprise for Tampa Bay, who's 47 home runs ranked tied for No. 21 in baseball with the St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins. Prior to this stretch, the Rays had scored via homer only 34.1 percent of the time (63 of 187 runs).

GET THE BROOMS OUT: The Rays can sweep the series on Sunday with a win, and it would their first home sweep of the year if they can pull it off. They have won six of 11 series so far at Steinbrenner Field, but all three series wins were by 2-1 margins. They have one road sweep, taking down the San Diego Padres with three straight wins from April 25-27.