Rays-Twins Preview

With their longest slide of the season in the past, the Tampa Bay Rays hope to start stringing together some victories.

The visiting Rays look to win back-to-back games for the first time in two weeks Saturday against the Minnesota Twins.

Mired in a five-game skid, Tampa Bay (23-30) overcame a 2-1 deficit to even this four-game set with Friday's 4-2 victory. Evan Longoria and Logan Morrison each hit solo homers and Brad Miller delivered a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning to help give the Rays just their third victory in 14 contests.

"We haven't been playing exceptionally well but (Friday) we did enough to get the W," Morrison said. "That's all that really matters."

Tampa Bay last won consecutive games during a four-game winning streak May 16-20.

Rays starters posted a 9.60 ERA in the previous three games before Jake Odorizzi gave up both runs in six innings Friday.

Tampa Bay's Matt Andriese (3-0, 2.36 ERA) hopes to follow with another solid outing of his own after giving up one earned run over seven innings of a 6-2 loss at Kansas City on Monday.

''That's what we focus on as a staff, to go deep and give our team a chance to win,'' Andriese said. ''You've got to look up at the scoreboard at the end of the day, but collectively if we're all going deep in the game, then more times than not we're going to come away with the win."

The right-hander has completed at least six innings in four of his five starts since making his 2016 debut May 8. He's given up fewer than two earned runs in three of those efforts.

''I've always believed in myself," he said.

Andriese's only previous appearance against the Twins (16-38) came when he yielded five runs over three innings of relief in an 11-7 loss Aug. 25.

Brian Dozier homered off Andriese in that contest and has nine RBIs while hitting safely in eight straight games against the Rays.

A loser in four of five, Minnesota hands the ball to Ervin Santana (1-4, 4.13).

The right-hander has allowed three or fewer earned runs in all but one of his nine starts, but his teammates have scored more than two with him on the mound just once. That was again the case Monday, when Santana gave up three runs in seven innings of a 3-2 loss at Oakland.

"There's not much to complain about with the effort we got from (Santana)," manager Paul Molitor told MLB's official website.

Santana had little reason to be pleased about his performance Aug. 25, when he allowed five runs and eight hits in 2 2/3 innings against Tampa Bay.

Longoria is 7 for 17 with two homers against Santana, and he's hit .444 with three home runs and 10 RBIs in the last seven games.

Morrison is batting .426 with four homers and 13 RBIs in his last 18 games after hitting .119 with no RBIs in his first 28.

"It's a process," Morrison said. "You just come to the field every day, put your head down and continue to work."