It is worth asking what the Tampa Bay Rays are playing for at this point. They would need to win their last 13 games or at least go 12-1 to have any shot at the postseason, and even if they managed to do so, they probably still wouldn’t make it. There are six teams ahead of them for the second Wild Card spot in the American League, and their four-game series with the Boston Red Sox beginning on Monday will be a battle to stay out of last place.
All of the disclaimers aside, though, the Rays desperately needed this win.