The Rays earned the right to move on to the 2026 World Series, as Tampa Bay finished off the Guardians in Game 6 of the ALCS. This series didn’t play out as things did for the Rays in the 2026 regular season. But thanks to stellar starting pitching and clutch pitching, Tampa Bay bounced the Guardians and earned some revenge from 2022, too.
Tampa Bay won the bullpen battle…
But not in the way that some might think.
Cleveland’s bullpen pitched well overall during the series. Just from looking at the numbers, a 3.71 ERA and a good number of strikeouts, although not exactly an average of one per inning (29 over 34 IP). But what killed Cleveland, and what benefitted the Rays, was the mileage.
Between the six games, Guardians relievers logged 34 innings. The Rays? Just 19.1 IP. Drew Rasmussen and Freddy Peralta both gave the Rays much-needed length, which certainly helped during a compressed schedule created by a rain-out on October 16. However, the Guardians didn’t get that from Parker Messick in Game 5, which created a trickle-down effect.
Now, Guardians relievers did a tremendous job of blowing away Rays hitters. Erik Sabrowski, Slade Cecconi, and Daniel Espino all ranked in the top 10 among pitchers during the CS in Whiff%, with Espino ranking second behind Tanner Scott.
The only Ray on that list, which included four Guardians, was Tyler Wells, who became a high-trust arm for Kevin Cash over the past few weeks.
To the Rays’ credit, Tampa Bay’s bullpen was able to do a lot to beat Cleveland. More specifically, expand the strike zone in key situations. Tyler Wells did that in Game 5 against Jose Ramirez. One night later, Kevin Kelly did against Brayan Rocchio.
Cam Booser and Bryan Baker were also two of the best in that regard during the Championship Series.
Throw the rules out
As one would expect, all that power stuff from the Guardians’ pitching staff resulted in a lot of swing-and-misses from Rays hitters. Far more than in the regular season, where the club was one of the best in terms of putting the ball in play over a 162-game season.
Yet what’s interesting about the above list is that many players who whiffed a lot in both the NLCS and ALCS wound up making significant impacts. Which goes to show something very important: Whiff% is great, so long as it results in the end of at-bats, too.
Cleveland pitchers couldn’t finish off the Rays in key situations. Like, in Game 6, when Richie Palacios battled against Tim Herrin on a two-strike count, which resulted in a two-run double.
Clutch offense from the Rays
Game 6 was also a microcosm of what the Rays were able to manufacture in tight spots throughout the regular season.
Just when the Guardians appeared to have some momentum after cutting the Rays’ three-run lead to two in Game 6, Junior Caminero lined one that hit the foul pole in left field. Then, after the Guardians nearly tied it in the eighth inning, Yandy Diaz backed up his guarantee with a two-run shot.
Sometimes, those rallies wound up being pretty. But on other occasions, it was more of a grind-it-out attitude. Nonetheless, it worked.
Where do the Guardians go from here?
The good news for the Guardians is that the club is well-positioned to repeat success in 2027.
Many of the young faces on this team — think Chase DeLauter, Parker Messick, Travis Bazzana, Cade Smith, and staff ace Gavin Williams — are controllable for the time being. The one piece that the Guardians will have to make a big decision on is Steven Kwan, who will be eligible to go to market after the 2027 season.
But overall, Cleveland should be fine. However, this does sting. For the second time in three years, Cleveland went down in the ALCS in a series that was winnable.
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