The Red Sox have been very hot as of late, winning 10 of their past 13 games. The hot streak is largely due to Boston's impressive pitching staff, but the recent string of "Ws" can also be attributed to a streaking offense.
Daniel Nava has been extremely effective since being recalled in mid-May. In 14 games this season, the utility outfielder is hitting .350 and has stroked a pair of home runs to go along with his 11 RBIs.
The return of Kevin Youkilis has also been a pleasant surprise for the Red Sox. Since his return, Youkilis has gone 3-for-6 with a home run and an RBI. The surge has forced the Red Sox to find a way to incorporate first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and rookie third baseman Will Middlebrooks into the lineup as well.
Gonzalez has been on a bit of a down-swing of late. The All-Star has hit safely in five of the past six games, but he's still only hitting .269 on the season and has trouble powering the ball as he still sits with just three homers on the year. As for Middlebrooks, the rookie has been tearing up major league pitching with an 8-for-20 streak, a home run and three RBIs over the past five games.
The Rays come in with the hot bat of B.J. Upton leading the charge, and Jon Lester will be tasked with slowing down the Tampa offense on Friday night.
Here are the Red Sox and Rays temperatures for Friday, May 25.
Rays
B.J. Upton 90
Luke Scott 82
Drew Sutton 82
Sean Rodriguez 73
Stephen Vogt 70
Will Rhymes 68
Carlos Pena 67
Ben Zobrist 66
Matt Joyce 66
Chris Gimenez 63
Rich Thompson 62
Elliot Johnson 61
Jose Molina 53
