Ron Washington will keep Josh Hamilton in centerfield on Thursday to try to prevent the Rays from taking extra bases on hits.

“His arm plays out there,” Washington said. “They will think twice about going from first to third on a single with Josh out there a lot more than they would with someone else. Teams won’t take liberties with him there.”

Hamilton is rated by FanGraphs as having the second best outfield arm in the majors behind teammate Jeff Francoeur.