Red Sox Are Coming, but the Rays Have Everything Needed to Hold Them Off

The Tampa Bay Rays continue to prove they are one of the best teams in the American League.

After picking up their fourth straight win on Friday night, taking down the Seattle Mariners in the series opener, the team now holds a 4.5-game lead ahead of the New York Yankees for the AL East division. The Yankees are not the only team right on the heels of the Rays, as the Boston Red Sox, who have won 27 of their last 30 games, now only sit five games back of the Rays for the division.

But with just under 70 games left before the MLB postseason, did the Rays add enough to hold off their division rivals?

Although currently in third place, the Boston Red Sox are clearly the biggest competition and biggest threat for Tampa Bay, not only for the division but as for the best record in the American League. Boston is on a nine-game winning streak and continues to show that it was a smart idea for them to become buyers at the MLB trade deadline.

Players such as Willson Contreras are having career years in a Red Sox uniform, and they still await newly acquired catcher Adley Rutschman, who will begin his rehab assignment in the minor leagues this weekend.

It will be a long time before the two teams meet, so the rest of the schedule is paramount for both squads. Boston will travel to Tropicana Field on September 18th for a weekend series against the Rays, just seven days before the regular season ends.

Like Tampa Bay, the Red Sox have found themselves a solid rotation inside the pitching staff. Since their winning ways began in late June, the Red Sox are top five in all major hitting categories, including on-base percentage, slugging, and runs scored.

But regardless of how well Boston is doing, Tampa Bay continues to lead the division and continues to prove that they are the better team since the beginning of the year. Erik Neander in the front office made the needed additions this past week to bolster the roster to ensure depth is in place to continue competing and holding off teams like Boston and New York.

Liam Hicks has already shown a vast improvement in the power department for the catcher's spot in the batting order. Although Freddy Peralta didn't have a good outing to begin his Rays debut, Tampa Bay is known for resurging careers inside the organization.

Adding a top-end reliever like Tyler Wells, who is familiar with division rivals, and you have a squad that could easily be seen as a World Series contender.

Tampa Bay must capitalize in moments that matter, though. The team is currently in an "easy" portion of its schedule. As they won't face a squad with a winning record until the final series in August, they must pick up as many wins as possible during that span to take advantage and hold the Wolves of the AL East at bay.

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Yahoo Sports. Open at source →