The Red Sox are in the throes of their COVID-19 outbreak after another person — this time Yairo Muñoz — tested positive for the virus. That brings the total number of individuals involved up to 11, with eight players and three coaches affected.
But chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said before Wednesday’s game that he didn’t foresee any postponements, and so the show is going on. The Red Sox will play Game 3 of their four-game set in St. Petersburg as planned.
Naturally, the lineup will look different than it did in Game 2, given that Xander Bogaerts — who hit fourth and suited up at shortstop Tuesday — was removed from the game in the second inning after his COVID-19 test came back positive.
Jonathan Araúz, who played second base Tuesday, will slide over to replace Bogaerts at shortstop, creating the opportunity of a lifetime for Jack Lopez. Lopez, who won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with Team USA, will make his Major League Baseball debut.
He will hit eighth and play second base, while Araúz will hit ninth.
Kyle Schwarber and Hunter Renfroe will flip-flop in the order, with Schwarber leading off and Renfroe batting second. Rafael Devers will follow, moving up from his fifth slot in Tuesday’s lineup. J.D. Martinez drops from third to fourth to fill Bogaerts’ spot.
Chris Sale will get the ball for his fourth start since returning from Tommy John surgery.
NESN will air Red Sox-Rays in full. Pregame coverage starts at 6 p.m. ET. First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 7:10 p.m., and postgame coverage immediately will follow the final out. If you can’t watch on television, be sure to stream full coverage of the game online at Watch NESN Live.
Here are the full lineups for Wednesday’s Red Sox-Rays game.
BOSTON RED SOX (75-59)
Kyle Schwarber, 1B
Hunter Renfroe, RF
Rafael Devers, 3B
J.D. Martinez, DH
Alex Verdugo, LF
Christian Vázquez, C
Jarren Duran, CF
Jack Lopez, 2B
Jonathan Araúz, SS
Chris Sale, LHP (3-0 2.35 ERA)
TAMPA BAY RAYS (84-48)
Randy Arozarena, RF
Nelson Cruz, DH
Wander Franco, SS
Yandy DÃaz, 1B
Manuel Margot, CF
Mike Zunino, C
Jordan Luplow, LF
Joey Wendle, 3B
Taylor Walls, 2B
Drew Rasmussen, RHP (1-1 3.46 ERA)
