Strong Shields: Shields is tied with Matt Garza for the team lead with 13 quality starts and is coming off an outing in which he pitched well before giving up two late solo homers in 51/3 innings against the Yankees. Shields has fared well against the Royals, going 5-0 with a 3.70 ERA in six career starts against them.
Bounce back: Bannister, winless in his past four starts, has pitched pretty well, giving up three earned runs or fewer in three of them. He is 1-3 with a 6.33 ERA in five career starts against the Rays.
Key matchups
Rays vs. Bannister
Bartlett 2-for-13
Crawford 5-for-14
Peña 4-for-13, HR
Royals vs. Shields
DeJesus 4-for-19
Guillen 2-for-12
Olivo 5-for-15