Gameday Preview (Wednesday): Rays, Drew Rasmussen, Seek 5th Straight Road Win

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Tampa Bay Rays have the highest road winning percentage in baseball, and they've won four straight on the road heading into Wednesday night's game with the Kansas City Royals.

They're shooting for No. 5, with their ace on the mound, right-hander Drew Rasmussen. He's been terrific all year, with a 2.61 earned run average that ranks No. 7 in the American League and No. 10 in all of baseball. He's had 10 starts already this season where he's given up two runs or less — and six where he hasn't given up a run at all.

The Rays won 5-1 Tuesday night, so they can clinch the series with a win. They are 7-1-2 in their last 10 series.

Here are the details on the game:

How to watch Rays-Royals

Who: Tampa Bay Rays (44-35) at Kansas City Royals (38-41)
When: Wednesday, June 25 at 7:40 p.m. ET
Where: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
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 HardRockBet.com at minus-130, and the Royals' money line odds are plus-110. On the run line, you can bet the Rays minus-1.5 at plus-115 odds, and the Royals plus-1.5 runs at minus-145 odds. The over/under is 9.5 runs.

Here are the starting lineups for both teams:

Rays batting order

Yandy Diaz DH
Brandon Lowe 2B
Junior Caminero 3B
Jonathan Aranda 1B
Christopher Morel LF
Josh Lowe RF
Jose Caballero SS
Chandler Simpson CF
Danny Jansen C

Royals batting order

Jonathan India 2B
Bobby Witt Jr. SS
Maikel Garcia DH
Vinnie Pasquantino 1B
Salvador Perez C
Jac Caglianone RF
Nick Loftin 3B
John Rave LF
Kyle Isbel CF

Pitching matchup

DREW RASMUSSEN, Tampa Bay Rays: Drew Rasmussen is 6-5 with a 2.61 earned run average. ... The 29-year-old right-hander is making his 16th start of the season and second against the Royals, a 3-0 loss on April 30. ... Rasmussen lost his last start to the Baltimore Orioles on June 19, his first loss since May 11. ... He has gone 5-1 with a 1.83 ERA over his
last seven starts since May 17, posting a 0.89 WHIP with 32 strikeouts and eight walks while holding opponents to a .197 average. …Rasmussen’s 0.89 WHIP during the span ranks sixth in the majors, while his ERA ranks fifth and his opponent's batting. average is 10th.

MICHAEL WACHA, Kansas City Royals: Michael Wacha, a 33-year-old right-hander from Iowa City, Iowa, is making his 16th start of the season. He's 4-6 thus far, with a 3.24 ERA. ... Wacha is in his 13th season in the big leagues, and second with the Royals. ... He did not pitch in the first Rays-Royals series this season in Tampa. ... In his last start at Texas on June 19, he picked up the win, going six innings and allowing just one run and two hits. ... He faced the Rays last July and won 4-2, allowing just one run and two hits while striking out eight batters.

Newsy Rays-Royals nuggets

DAILY FANTASY WINNERS: Tampa Bay's Brandon Lowe has struggled against Wacha during his career. He's just 1-for-10 all-time. The only hitter in the Rays' lineup who's had any success at all against Wacha is designated hitter Yandy Diaz, who's 3-for-8 with a solo home run. Diaz has collected multiple hits in six straight games, tied for the longest streak of his career and tied for fourth longest in franchise history

CAMINERO ON FIRE: Junior Caminero is one home run shy of becoming the fifth Ray to reach 20 homers before July. With his next home run this week, he would join Jose Canseco (28 homers, 1999), Carlos Peña (23 in, 2009), Logan Morrison (22 in 2017) and Greg Vaughn (20 in 2001). Caminero would also be the sixth player in MLB history to accomplish the feat at age 21 or younger.