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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 @ Red Sox: Doom and gloom in Beantown, and it looks it might rain, too

Posted Sep 15, 2011 by Roger Mooney

Updated Sep 15, 2011 at 03:41 PM

A gloomy afternoon in the Hub.

ROGER MOONEY
BOSTON Up here where the sky is really falling and New England sports fans can’t rest easy unless Tom Brady has some time the throw, you get the impression from walking around town that it is the Red Sox who are chasing the Rays for the final American League playoff spot.

David Ortiz has back spasms. Adrian Gonzalez has leg issues. Kevin Youkilis is far from 100 percent. Carl Crawford still isn’t hitting like Carl Crawford. Daniel Bard can’t get anyone out. Josh Beckett missed his last start with a bum ankle. Jon Lester was awful in his last start against the Rays.

And now here come the Rays for a four-game series that begins tonight and can decide this Wild Card race, at least for the Rays.

Anyone notice the Angels are just a half-game behind the Rays? Who do the Angels have this weekend? Oh, the Orioles.

Hey, Beantown fans, how ‘bout them Patriots?

The Red Sox lead the Rays by four games in the standings despite winning twice in their last 10 games.

We know what the Rays did in Baltimore the past two nights, following up their must-sweep sweep of the Red Sox last weekend by losing two of three to the worst team in the division.

The weather forecast for tonight is not good, with rain predicted late this afternoon and again in the evening.

Jeremy Hellickson will kickoff this crucial four-game series. A win and Hellickson becomes the third rookie starter in 35 years to beat the Red Sox twice in Fenway, joining Baltimore’s Rodrigo Lopez, who won three times in 2002, and Oakland’s Brett Anderson, who won twice in 2009.

Hellickson is opposed by Kyle Weiland, a right-handed rookie tossed in the Red Sox rotation because of an injury to Eric Bedard, who was brought here from Seattle at the trade deadline to sure up the rotation.

We will get an update in Sam Fuld’s right wrist and Kyle Farnsworth’s right elbow once the locker room opens at 3:40 p.m.

Here are the lineups:

RAYS
Jennings LF
Upton CF
Longoria 3B
Zobrist 2B
Damon DH
Joyce RF
Kotchman 1B
Jaso C
Brignac SS
—
Hellickson P

RED SOX
Ellsbury CF
Pedroia 2B
Gonzalez 1B
Ortiz DH
Youkilis 3B
Reddick Rf
Crawford LF
Saltalamacchia C
Scutaro P
—
Weiland P