Alex Cobb will start for the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night, as they play host to the playoff-bound Baltimore Orioles.
Cobb can ill afford a hiccup, as the Rays need to sweep the Orioles, and need the Texas Rangers to sweep the Oakland A's just to qualify for a 163rd game to determine the last wild card spot.
Both Joe Maddon and Buck Showalter have announced the starting lineups for Monday's contest, and they are as follows:
Baltimore Orioles
LF Nate McLouth
SS J.J. Hardy
RF Chris Davis
CF Adam Jones
C Matt Wieters
DH Jim Thome
1B Mark Reynolds
2B Ryan Flaherty
3B Manny Machado
SP Wei-Yin Chen
Tampa Bay Rays
LF Desmond Jennings
CF B.J. Upton
SS Ben Zobrist
3B Evan Longoria
1B Jeff Keppinger
DH Ben Francisco
RF Sam Fuld
2B Ryan Roberts
C Chris Gimenez
SP Alex Cobb
Unfortunately for the Rays, the Orioles also have something to play for, as Baltimore enters Monday tied with the New York Yankees atop the AL East. Winning the division has never been more advantageous, since the wild card teams will square off in a do-or-die one game playoff on Friday.