The Tampa Bay Rays’ Brandon Lowe watches his home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning of Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday in Arlington, Texas. (AP photo)

d

He starts World Series Game 3 for the Tampa Bay Rays tonight with a chance to tie Orlando Hernandez’s record of eight consecutive winning postseason decisions, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. By beating the Los Angeles Dodgers and winning his sixth straight postseason start, he would move within one of Bob Gibson’s record.

How unlikely for a pitcher traded by Pittsburgh for a minor leaguer five years ago, a right-hander who turns 37 in three weeks and didn’t make his first All-Star team until 2018,

“I do not wake up in the morning and say it’s my time to shine. I would say that I wake up in the morning and I question if I’ve done what I was supposed to do to get ready for what I’ve been asked to do,” Morton said. “I wake up with the humble recognition that what I’m about to do is an opportunity that not many people get to experience, and I try to prepare for it just like that.”

Ace Walker Buehler starts for the Dodgers, who won the opener 8-3 and were beaten 6-4 in Game 2. While there is no travel in the first neutral-site World Series, the teams had a day off, giving bullpens some recovery time.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Victor Gonzalez celebrates the end of the top of the fourth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday in Arlington, Texas. (AP photo)

Both teams decided against full workouts on Thursday, though some players threw in Globe Life Field’s outfield under the closed roof and a few pitched off mounds in the bullpens.

Morton beat Houston on Saturday in Game 7 of the AL Championship Series at San Diego, allowing two hits in 5 2/3 scoreless innings to become the first pitcher with victories in four winner-take-all games.

Morton is 3-0 with a 0.57 ERA in this year’s postseason, allowing 11 hits in 15 2/3 innings with 17 strikeouts and four walks.

“He’s definitely a postseason stud,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “I think it’s the approach, the demeanor that he takes. You don’t see any difference. You don’t see any anxiety. It’s very much a been-there, done-that approach. And if you see anything, it’s that he has a knack for finding that extra gear.”