San Diego Padres at Tampa Bay Rays
Game 1: 4:10 p.m. Friday (Padres.TV)
Game 2: 1:10 p.m. Saturday (Padres.TV)
Game 3: 10:40 a.m. Sunday (Padres.TV)
In the standings
San Diego Padres (72-62, 2nd in NL West)
The Padres eight games behind the Dodgers in the division, but they have a 1 ½-game lead on the Diamondbacks in race for the NL’s third wild-card spot. The Phillies are up two games on the Padres as the NL’s second wild-card team. The Padres begin the weekend their postseason odds at 66%, as calculated by FanGraphs.com.
Tampa Bay Rays (79-54, 1st in AL East)
The Rays have spit their last 10 games and have a four-game lead on the Yankees in the division. They are also nine games ahead of the White Sox as the AL’s No. 1 seed. As such, they are 100% locks to make the postseason, according to FanGraphs.com. The Rays swept a three-game series last year in San Diego.
Trending
San Diego: OF Fernando Tatis Jr. has nine homers and a 1.002 OPS this month, while OF Jackson Merrill has six homers and an .854 OPS in August. The only other regular with an OPS over .800 is 1B Ty France (.806). Meanwhile, 3B Manny Machado has two extra-base hits — one homer and one double — while posting a .573 OPS to start August.
Tampa Bay: 3B Junior Caminero has five homers and a .789 OPS to start August. He is hitting .409/.458/.455 over the last week, but has just one extra-base hit (a double). C Liam Hicks leads the team with a .972 OPS this month, while no other regular has an OPS over .800. DH Yandy Diaz is hitting .167/.231/.167 over the last week.
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Nick Martinez throws to an Athletics batter during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Scott Marshall)
Pitching matchups
Friday
Padres RHP Casey Mize (5-7, 3.44 ERA) | He’s making his start on turn despite leaving his last start after 2⅔ innings with a right ankle sprain. He has a 7.00 ERA in four starts with the Padres, but has two quality starts between a poor debut (3 ⅓ IP, 8 ER) and last week’s injury-shortened start (2 ⅔ IP, 4 ER). Mize has a 4.50 ERA in four games (12 IP) against the Rays, the last start coming in 2025 (5 IP, 1 ER).
Rays LHP Shane McLanahan (9-6, 3.10 ERA) | His strikeout rate (8.3 per nine innings) is a career low in his first year back from Tommy John surgery. McLanahan missed roughly two weeks this month with a back injury, but he threw five shutout innings last week in his second start off the injured list. His only start against the Padres was a win in 2023 (6⅔ IP, 1 ER).
Saturday
Padres RHP Walker Buehler (8-6, 4.63 ERA) | He’s thrown three straight quality starts (2.00 ERA, 18 IP), doubling his total for the season. Buehler has a 5.21 ERA in 12 starts on the road so far. He’s made three career starts against the Rays, all last year (18 IP, 4.00 ERA).
Rays RHP Nick Martinez (13-4, 2.93 ERA) | The former Padre was a first-time All-Star this year and he leads qualifying starters with 1.3 walks per nine innings. His strikeout rate (5.3 per nine innings) is his lowest since returning from Japan. Martinez has a 4.50 ERA in 18 innings since leaving the Padres as a free agent after the 2023 season.
Sunday
Padres LHP Robbie Ray (11-7, 3.21 ERA) | He’s 1-1 with a 3.98 ERA, 15 strikeouts and 13 walks in four starts (20 ⅓ IP) since joining the Padres after the trade deadline. Ray has a 3.21 ERA in 61⅔ career innings against the Rays, including a loss in quality start (6⅓ IP, 3 ER) earlier this year with the Giants.
Rays RHP Drew Rasmussen (14-5, 2.95 ERA) | He’s been an All-Star each of the last two years (24-10, 2.85 ERA) and is 10 innings from passing last year’s career-high innings total (150 IP). He has a 2.00 ERA over his last seven starts (2.20 ERA), all wins for Rasmussen. He has only two relief appearances in his career against the Padres, the last in 2024 (2 IP, 2 ER).
Qualifying leaders
OPS: Padres—OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.801), OF Jackson Merrill (.705), 3B Manny Machado (.703); Rays—3B Junior Caminero (.897), DH Yandy Diaz (.829), 1B Jonathan Aranda (.783).
HRs: Padres—Machado (24), Merrill (21), 1B Ty France (18); Rays—Caminero (35), Diaz (19), Aranda (16).
RBIs: Padres—Machado (72), Tatis (67), Merrill (67); Rays—Caminero (84), Aranda (78), Diaz (72).
Steals: Padres—Tatis (30), Merrill (24), SS Xander Bogaerts (17); Rays—OF Chandler Simpson (35), SS Taylor Walls (19), OF Cedric Mullins (18).
Saves: Padres—RHP Mason Miller (32-for-33, 0.96 ERA); Rays—RHP Bryan Baker (38-for-41, 1.56 ERA).
Holds: Padres—LHP Adrián Morejón (21, 2.63 ERA), RHP Jason Adam (17, 2.51 ERA), RHP Jeremiah Estrada (12, 3.48 ERA); Rays—RHP Kevin Kelly (27, 2.04 ERA), LHP Garrett Cleavinger (23, 3.63 ERA), RHP Cole Sulser (11, 4.86 ERA).
Training room
San Diego: RHP Casey Mize exited Saturday’s start with a right ankle sprain, but he is starting Friday. RHP Jeremiah Estrada (shoulder) hit the injured list on Wednesday. RHP Joe Musgrove (elbow) made his fourth rehab start on Thursday, while RHP Nick Pivetta (flexor) made a rehab start Tuesday for low Single-A Lake Elsinore. INF Miguel Andujar (wrist) is swinging a bat but progressing slowly, while RHP Jason Adam (shoulder) is in a throwing program. RHP Lucas Giolito (elbow) has been working in Arizona, while OF Samad Taylor (oblique) is rehabbing with Triple-A El Paso.
Tampa Bay: RHP Griffin Jax (elbow) made a rehab start on Aug. 23 and could by early September. The Rays are also without, OFs Victor Mesa Jr. (hamstring) and Jake Fraley (hernia), 2B Gavin Lux (shoulder), INF Ben Williamson (hamstring) and RHPs Cole Sulser (back), Edwin Uceta (shoulder), Jonathan Heasley (elbow) and Ryan Pepiot (hip).