The Rays came into Tuesday night needing Freddy Peralta to steady things, and he did more than that. In Game 2 of the American League Championship Series, Tampa Bay rode six scoreless innings from the veteran right-hander to a 3-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians, knotting the best-of-seven series at one game apiece.
Peralta’s line was strong on its own: four hits allowed, two walks, six strikeouts and 99 pitches. But the eye-opening part was the heater. The 30-year-old touched 99.4 mph, the hardest pitch of his major league career.
That kind of jump stood out because Peralta’s regular-season fastball sat around 94.3 mph. MLB.com’s game coverage said he threw 29 pitches above 97 mph against Cleveland, a huge spike for a pitcher whose fastball was already a bat-misser. He leaned on it often, too, going right at Guardians hitters and refusing to let them settle into comfortable counts.
Tampa Bay needed the edge. Cleveland had taken Game 1 by a 7-3 score, and the Guardians arrived with momentum after their dramatic comeback against the Chicago White Sox in the previous round. Peralta shut that down before it could grow.
The Rays did their damage in the fourth inning, and it started with an opening that Cleveland handed them. José Ramírez’s fielding error at third base extended the inning and opened the door for Tampa Bay to break through. Liam Hicks followed with a two-run single, and suddenly Peralta was working with a three-run cushion.
Cleveland pushed back in the seventh when Chase DeLauter delivered an RBI double, but Tampa Bay’s bullpen kept the door closed from there. Bryan Baker got the final outs for his fourth postseason save.
Parker Messick took the loss for Cleveland after giving up three unearned runs in five innings.
The series now shifts to Progressive Field for Game 3 on Thursday at 6 p.m. ET, with Cleveland still owning three straight home games. Tampa Bay, though, walks in with the series leveled and a major new development on the mound: Peralta showing a fastball that reached a level he had never hit before.
In Other News...
Guardians' Most Painful Trade Looks Even Worse After New Report
The 2021 swap that sent Junior Caminero from Cleveland to Tampa Bay has long lingered as one of the organizations toughest second guesses, and fresh reporting only adds another layer to the regret. The Guardians moved the then-rising prospect for pitcher Tobias Myers, a deal made with the hope of solving a pitching need while parting with a young hitter who was still far from the majors.
Now the sting is not just what Cleveland gave up, but how close the Rays came to asking for something else from the system before settling on Caminero. Xzavion Curry was among the minor leaguers Tampa Bay initially sought, and the fact that Caminero has developed into a top prospect while Myers and Curry have had quieter big league careers makes the trade look even harder to defend in hindsight. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Schedule Change Created An Unusual MLB Playoff Ripple
MLBs postseason calendar picked up an odd little domino effect Wednesday, with the league moving Game 4 of the NLCS between the Dodgers and Brewers up an hour to 8 p.m. ET. The change did not come out of nowhere. It followed the earlier decision to shift ALCS Game 3 between the Guardians and Rays from 6 p.m. ET to 1 p.m. ET because of expected inclement weather, a reminder of how one playoff adjustment can ripple across the rest of the bracket.
For Cleveland fans, the practical part is simple: the team confirmed that tickets and parking passes will still work for the new start time. The bigger picture is a postseason schedule that can still bend quickly around weather, TV and the rest of the leagues needs, even as the Guardians try to stay focused on the field rather than the clock. [Read more 🡒]
Gavin Williams Is Giving Guardians Fans Another Reason To Believe
Gavin Williams has already done his share to fuel Clevelands October run, and now he is looking to add something else to the mix as the Guardians head into the next round. The young starting pitcher said he wants to be a more vocal leader as the club prepares for Game 3 of the American League Championship Series, a sign of how quickly he has grown from power arm to one of the voices in the room.
Williams backed up that confidence with his latest outing, throwing 5.2 scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts in the series-clinching win over the Chicago White Sox. Cleveland now turns to a Game 3 matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays, set for 1 PM ET Thursday after a weather-related delay from the original 6 PM start, and the Guardians will be hoping their emerging starter brings the same edge both on the mound and in the clubhouse. [Read more 🡒]