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Tampa Bay Rays (76-83) at Cleveland Indians (83-76), 7:05 p.m. (ET)

(SportsNetwork.com) - With the playoffs a possibility by only the slimmest of margins, the Cleveland Indians turn to Corey Kluber on Friday night for the opener of a three-game set with the Tampa Bay Rays.

They wouldn't have it any other way given his status as American League Cy Young contender.

Cleveland kept its dim postseason chances alive on Wednesday by salvaging the finale of a three-game series with the Kansas City Royals and remained in the hunt when the Oakland Athletics lost to Texas on Thursday.

The Indians are three games back of the A's for the second wild card spot with just three games to play.

Kluber takes the mound tonight in this must-win situation and has a chance to further establish himself in serious talks for the Cy Young award. The emerging righty is 17-9 with a 2.53 earned run average this season -- including 4-0 with a 1.39 ERA in his last four outings -- and is second in the majors with 258 strikeouts.

Kluber has fanned 14 batters in each of his last two outings, including Sunday's 7-2 win over the Minnesota Twins, who he held to a pair of runs over eight innings.

"The guys you're talking about in the Cy Young voting are all pretty good," Cleveland manager Terry Francona told his club's website. "They all, in their own way, have excelled at a really high level. I don't know where Kluber's going to fall in all of this. I'm so biased. We're supposed to be biased. He's our guy. I haven't looked at the other guys enough to know where he fits. I probably wouldn't have the ability to look at it objectively anyway."

Kluber is 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA in two previous starts against the Rays, who hope starter Chris Archer is on point tonight on his 26th birthday.

Archer is aiming to wrap up his second full season in the majors with a third straight winning decision. The righty beat the Chicago White Sox on Saturday, hurling 6 1/3 scoreless innings of two-hit ball, also walking four.

"I thought he had as good of stuff as he has had all year," Rays manager Joe Maddon said of Archer, who is 10-8 with a 3.42 ERA on the year.

Archer has lost both of his previous starts against the Indians while posting a 9.00 ERA.

The Rays are concluding the regular season with six straight on the road, a span that began with a pair of losses in three games in Boston. Tampa Bay lost the final two games of that series, outscored 22-4.

The Indians won two of three over the hosting Rays from May 9-11.

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