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Roger Mooney

Roger Mooney covers the Tampa Bay Rays for The Tampa Tribune, TBO.com and News Channel 8. He has covered the Rays since their first season in 1998, including 11 years for the Bradenton Herald. Roger has also covered Florida, South Florida and Florida State football, the Bucs and the Lightning.

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Rays @ Rangers: The streaking Rays vs the slugging Rangers

Posted Apr 27, 2012 by Roger Mooney

Updated Apr 27, 2012 at 06:00 PM

ROGER MOONEY
ARLINGTON, TX James Shields will try to keep the train rolling tonight against the explosive Texas Rangers offensive at the Rangers Ballpark.

The Rangers lead the American League in batting average (.295), hits (197), home runs (31), runs (107) and RBI (104). The Rangers also lead the AL in ERA (2.62), which means they prevent runs as well as they can score them.

The Rangers have the major league’s best record at 15-4. The Rays have longest current winning streak – five games. Both teams are 8-2 in their last 10 games, the best mark in the majors over that span.

Shields is 5-2 with a 3.05 ERA in eight career starts against the Rangers, 2-2 with a 3.72 ERA in four starts in Arlington.

Shields has worked at least eight innings in each of his last three starts, earning the victory in each. Two of those wins came on the road, at Detroit and at Boston.

Rangers starter Matt Harrison, a lefty, is 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA in four career games against the Rays, including one start.

Joe Maddon has his right-handed lineup ready to face Harrison with Jeff Keppinger serving as the DH and Elliot Johnson playing second.

Here are the lineups:

RAYS
Jennings LF
Peña 1B
Longoria 3B
Zobrist 3B
Keppinger DH
Upton CF
Rodriguez SS
Gimenez C
Johnson SS
—
Shields RHP (3-0, 2.76)

RANGERS
Kinsler 2B
Andrus SS
Hamilton CF
Beltre 3B
Young DH
Cruz RF
Murphy LF
Napoli C
Moreland 1B
—
Harrison LHP (3-0, 1.66)