Angels Vs. Rays Game Preview: Halos Seek 3rd Straight Victory

The Los Angeles Angels are on a roll, looking to make up ground in the AL West with their third straight victory on Thursday. The Tampa Bay Rays on the other hand are looking to bounce-back from being completely blanked by Felix Hernandez's perfect game as they head to Angels Stadium for the start of a four-game set.

Both the Angels and Athletics sit six games back of the Rangers in the AL West, but with the A's having a terrible start to the month of August, the Angels needs to stay hot if they want to close the gap.

Tampa Bay will send David Price (15-4 2.50) to the mound, who has been simply outstanding as of late. In his last 10 outings, Price owns a 7-0 record with a 1.89 ERA along with 73 strikeouts in 71.1 innings pitched. He is 3-2 with a 3.48 ERA in seven carrer starts against the Halos, throwing a five-hit shutout in his last start against the Angels back in April.

Los Angeles will counter with Dan Haren (8-9, 4.68) who had been solid since returning from the DL until his last start, getting tagged for seven runs in 3.1 innings of work against the Mariners on Saturday, his shortest outing since 2003. Haren gave up four runs in his previous three starts (18 IP) combined.

Tampa Bay has won five out of six against the Angels this season, outscoring them 18-8 in those games.

First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. PT with coverage on Fox Sports West and KLLA 830 AM.

For more on the Angels, head on over to Halos Heaven.