Saturday, 4 a.m.

Are you ready to race? Are you ready to see if the Tampa Bay Rays can hold on or not?

The Rays lost a bit of their advantage Friday night, losing a 4-2 game to the Boston Red Sox at Tropicana Field. The Rays' lead over the Yankees is now down to four games, ann their lead over the Red Sox is nine and a half.

The Rays have tough sledding ahead. They have two more games against Boston, four against New York and three against Philadelphia.

The Rays struggled most of Friday night. They had only five hits, and Boston scored their four runs in the first three innings.

Roman Anthony led off the game with a home run, then had a two-run single in the second.

Anthony's homer was one of a pair off of Rays' starter Ian Seymour.

The Rays drew nine walks, but they were 0-for-13 with runners in scoring position. They left 12 men on base.

Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda drove in runs on ground outs for the Rays. They each climbed in the RBI race. Caminero is now third with 97 and Aranda sixth with 91,

Chandler Simpson fell four points behind Yonder Alvarez in the batting race at .308.

The Rays and Sox play again today at 4:10 p.m. at Tropicana Field. Freddy Peralta (9-12) is scheduled to start for the Rays against Payton Tolle (9-6).

Friday, 4 a.m.

For four months now, the standings have told you that the Tampa Bay Rays are the best team in the American League.

The number-crunchers will tell you the same.

The Rays made sure the accountants paid attention to their 10-1 victory over the Athletics Thursday. It was their 16th sweep of the season, most in the majors. The team now has a five-game lead in the AL East over the New York Yankees.

But those aren't the only impressive numbers.

-- Chandler Simpson now leads the AL in batting average (.311) and stolen bases (44).

-- Pitcher Drew Rasmussen has now tied teammate Nick Martinez for third in the majors with 15 wins.

-- Junior Caminero continues to lead the American League with 41 home runs.

-- Bryan Baker continues to lead the majors with 40 saves.

-- Caminero is third in the American League with 96 RBI.

-- Check out the Rays' ranks in overall hits. Diaz and Simpson are 1-2. But Caminero is fourth and Aranda sixth.

-- Rasmussen has the second-best WHIP in the league. He is third in batting average allowed.

Some pretty good numbers, right. Yet the schedule is challenging. The Rays have three games left at home against Boston, four on the road against the Yankees and three on the road against the Phillies.

The Rays burst out of a scoreless game in the fourth inning Thursday. They scored six times, and they had four of their seven hits. Simpson had a two-run single and Richie Palacios had a two-run double in the inning.

The Rays scored two more in the sixth on bases-loaded walks by Taylor Walls and Jonathan Aranda.

The Rays scored two more in the eighth on a single by Liam Hicks.

Both Hicks and Simpson had two hits for the Rays.

The Rays host the Boston Red Sox tonight at 7:10 at Tropicana Field. Ian Seymour (9-6) with start for the Rays against Ranger Saurez (7-4).

Thursday, 4 a.m.

The Tampa Bay Rays got their work in early. Late, they sweated.

The Rays scored twice in the first inning and twice in the second, jumping to a 4-0 lead.

Sure, if you want to quibble, the Rays managed only three more hits the rest of the game. The Athletics whittled the lead down to one run, but the bullpen held there for a 4-3 win at Tropicana Field.

The Rays improved their lead over the Yankees to 4 1/2 games in the AL East.

Nick Martinez won his 15th game (15-4) for the Rays. Cam Booser and Cole Susler both threw shutout innings in the eighth and ninth. Susler recorded his third save of the year.

The Rays hit five doubles in the game to lead their attack. Chandler Simpson -- who now leads in the American League in hitting with a .310 average --- and Jonny DeLuca each had two hits.

The Rays and A’s close out their series today st 1:10 p.m. at Tropicana Field. Drew Rasmussen (14-5) will start against former Ray Jeffrey Springs (4-13).