The Rays didn’t just survive Game 4 of the World Series - they showed exactly what a deep, flexible bench can do when a season is hanging by a thread.
Tampa Bay was staring at the end after Cooper Pratt put the Brewers ahead with a solo homer in the top of the 12th. Down to its final three outs after three straight losses, it looked like the Rays were about to be swept out of the series.
Instead, they scraped together two runs in the bottom of the inning and pulled off the kind of win that turns role players into the night’s headline names. Junior Caminero was part of the rally after reaching on an error by Joey Ortiz, but the real damage came from the supporting cast. Jonny DeLuca, Cedric Mullins and Ben Williamson all had a hand in the comeback, and Williamson delivered the finishing blow with a walk-off single.
BEN WILLIAMSON
WALK-OFF
RAYS SURVIVE! pic.twitter.com/bjHolx3L4m
- MLB (@MLB) October 28, 2026
That’s where the Rays and Guardians conversation comes in. The all-hands style Tampa Bay used in extras looks familiar on the surface, but there was one major difference: Kevin Cash had enough bodies left to keep changing the game inning by inning.
Cash emptied the bench, but almost every substitution came in extra innings. That kind of roster management is exactly why the Rays were able to keep pressure on the Brewers when the game stretched deep.
It also brings the Guardians’ own platoon habits back into focus. Cleveland has never been shy about chasing the matchup edge, but that approach can leave the club thin late if the game goes long. This season, that wasn’t as glaring because the Guardians had actual hitters on the roster, but Cash’s handling of Game 4 still called back to the 2025 Wild Card Series.
In that game, the Guardians opened with a rough-looking lineup that included Jhonkensy Noel and Johnathan Rodríguez, then used five late substitutions in a 2-1 loss. If that one had gone into extras, Vogt and the Guardians would have been in a tough spot.
The situations weren’t identical - Cleveland was trailing in that game while Tampa Bay was tied with Milwaukee - but the lesson was the same. Keep enough bench flexibility to keep playing baseball once the game starts stretching out.
Cash made his first move in the 11th, sending Jorge Mateo in to run for Yandy Díaz. Mateo stole a base, but he didn’t score.
The bigger punch came in the 12th, when Caminero was replaced by Cedric Mullins after reaching third on a Liam Hicks single. Mullins then scored on DeLuca’s single.
Two batters later, Williamson - who had entered as a pinch-runner - lined a single that brought home Nick Fortes, another pinch-runner, with the winning run. Williamson, Mullins and Fortes had combined for just 10 at-bats in the World Series, but they ended up driving the biggest moment of the night.
Every game unfolds differently, but the way the Rays used their bench made a strong case for the kind of roster flexibility the Guardians need when the late innings get messy.
In Other News...
Guardians Just Lost Another Behind The Scenes Voice Rivals Keep Poaching
The Guardians are losing another one of the behind-the-scenes people who helped shape their offensive program, as Conner Watson is headed to Houston to become the Astros director of hitting. Watson spent the past two seasons as Clevelands assistant director of hitting development, and his move is the latest reminder that the organizations player development work keeps getting noticed well beyond Progressive Field.
Chris Antonetti has already acknowledged the staff turnover, and in some ways that comes with the territory for a club whose development pipeline is routinely viewed as a strength. Still, it is the kind of loss that matters, because these roles influence how hitters are identified, coached and pushed forward before they ever become everyday names in Cleveland. The Guardians have built a reputation other teams want to borrow from, but keeping the people who built it together is proving to be a challenge. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians May Regret Letting These Prospects Slip Away
Clevelands farm system has already produced enough intriguing names to keep tabs on, and a few former Guardians prospects are beginning to look like more than background pieces in other organizations. Juan Brito, Jacob Cozart and Josh Hartle all moved on in separate trades, and each has taken a step that suggests the move may end up benefiting their new clubs as much as it cost Cleveland. Brito landed with the Reds and flashed promise in a limited look, while Cozarts strong Double-A showing for the Angels has put him on a path toward a possible big league debut.
Hartle may be the most interesting of the three because of the role he could eventually fill for Washington. He has been effective at Double-A and looks the part of a pitcher the Nationals can build around in the near future, which only adds to the sense that Cleveland may have parted with more upside than it realized. None of these deals is decided today, but by 2027 the Guardians could be looking at three former prospects becoming useful major leaguers somewhere else. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians May Have Built Something Special With These Two Young Arms
The Guardians have spent years trying to assemble a homegrown pitching core that can carry them beyond one good season, and Gavin Williams and Parker Messick are making that plan look a lot more realistic. Williams emerged as one of the most overpowering arms in the American League, leading the league in strikeouts and carrying that stuff into the postseason, while Messick put together a strong regular season that put him squarely in the Rookie of the Year conversation.
What makes the pairing so intriguing for Cleveland is that both pitchers came through the organizations development pipeline, giving the front office a chance to imagine a rotation anchored from within rather than pieced together from the outside. Williams already looks like the sort of frontline starter who can headline October games, and Messicks rapid rise only deepens the sense that the Guardians may have more than one future ace on their hands. [Read more 🡒]