Sox-rays rained out, game will be Monday

Friday night’s game between the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays was postponed due to inclement weather and will be made up on Monday at 4:05 p.m.

The game was called at 8:22 after a rain delay of one hour and 12 minutes, which was prompted by severe thunderstorms that moved into the Fenway Park area right around when the game was originally scheduled to begin.

Garrett Whitlock, who was originally scheduled to pitch Friday night, will now pitch Game 1 on Saturday, and Game 2’s starter is still undecided. Tanner Houck will start Sunday and Brayan Bello will take the mound on Monday.

Tampa Bay will send reliever Trevor Kelley to the mound as an opener in Game 1 and Tyler Glasnow will start Game 2. Taj Bradley is still expected to pitch Sunday and Monday’s starter hasn’t been announced.

The postponement comes at a uniquely inopportune time in the schedule.

In order to create space for an extra off-day on the calendar, the Red Sox and Rays were already set to play a scheduled doubleheader on Saturday. The clubs will play at 1:10 and 6:10 p.m., and originally they would have wrapped up their series on Sunday at 1:35 before getting an off day on Monday.

Now, instead of flying to Cleveland early for the start of their week-long road trip, the Red Sox will fly out after their Monday afternoon game and most likely arrive in Cleveland early Tuesday morning. Starting Saturday the Red Sox are in line to play 13 games in 12 days through the next off day on Thursday, June 15, and after Tampa Bay and Cleveland they’ll face the New York Yankees in the Bronx and Colorado Rockies at home.