The Tampa Bay Rays keep running into the same problem at the worst possible time: the bats just aren’t carrying their weight.
Thursday’s Game 3 loss to the Cleveland Guardians was a clean example of it. Tampa Bay scored once, just like it did across the 2022 and 2023 postseasons combined, and that wasn’t nearly enough to keep pace. The Rays had chances, too, but the offense never put together the kind of inning that changes a game.
They managed only four baserunners all night, and three of them came in the fourth inning. They also went down 1-2-3 in six different innings.
The tying run came up in the eighth, but it never crossed the plate. Against a team that allowed only three runs, that kind of night usually leaves little margin for error.
The Rays never found the extra push they needed.
This is not just about one game, either. Through six postseason games, Tampa Bay has scored three runs or fewer every time.
That’s not a sustainable formula, and the numbers from the regular season point in the same direction. According to StatMuse, the Rays went 23-47 when they scored three runs or fewer this year, a .329 winning percentage.
Even so, they’ve at least gone 2-2 in those situations this season, which tells you how much harder it is to win once the offense goes quiet.
Game 1 in the ALCS brought a different kind of breakdown. The bullpen took the heat for that one after letting things spiral, but the offense had chances there, too. Tampa Bay left opportunities on the table in the fifth and sixth innings that might have changed the shape of the night.
Cleveland didn’t waste its opening. In Game 1, the Guardians turned their chance back into a game in a big way.
In Game 3, they didn’t need late fireworks. They got the chance, took it, and won by one.
The Rays got the openings too, but didn’t do enough with them.
The bigger concern is how many of Tampa Bay’s trusted bats have gone missing. Junior Caminero, an MVP candidate in the American League, is 2-for-11 with one RBI in the ALCS.
Jonathan Aranda has not reached base at all in the series, while Victor Mesa Jr. has reached twice. Deadline pickup Liam Hicks has one strong game and two quiet ones.
Chandler Simpson delivered a big moment in Game 3, but that has been an exception rather than the rule in his postseason.
These are all players who helped put the Rays in this position in the first place. Right now, though, the group is not clicking together, and that’s the problem.
Tampa Bay needs that to change immediately with 6 p.m. on Friday in Cleveland. The Rays are still alive, but if this series slips away, there will be plenty of missed chances to revisit.
In Other News...
Rays Fans Are Stuck Waiting On A Crucial ALCS Game 4
Rain has pushed back Game 4 of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field, turning what was supposed to be an 8:08 p.m. ET start into a waiting game for the Rays and Guardians. MLB Communications and Cleveland both announced the delay and said updates would follow, leaving Tampa Bay fans to sit tight on a night that already carried plenty of weight with the series leaning Clevelands way, 2-1.
The pitching setup adds another layer to the pause, with Nick Martinez lined up for the Rays and Shawn Armstrong slated to open for Cleveland in what has the feel of a bullpen game. For Tampa Bay, the delay only heightens the tension around a matchup that could swing the series, and the hold-up keeps everyone guessing about when the next crucial inning will finally begin. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Need Junior Caminero To Snap Out Of This Fast
Junior Camineros bat has gone quiet at the worst possible time for Tampa Bay, and his Game 3 line in the ALCS only added to the concern. The young infielder went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts as the Rays dropped another chance to gain control of the series, leaving a lineup that has not produced nearly enough against Cleveland.
The frustration is not limited to one spot in the order, either. Yandy Daz and Jonathan Aranda have also been searching for answers at the plate, which has pushed Tampa Bay toward the bottom of the lineup for any reliable offense while it trails 2-1 in the series. The Rays still have time to turn things around, but they need a faster offensive response from the names they count on most. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Let A Winnable ALCS Game Slip Away At Worst Time
Tampa Bay had its chances early and even seemed to have a foothold in a game it needed to bank, getting on the board and briefly grabbing the lead on Chandler Simpsons triple. For a stretch, it looked like the Rays might turn a tense ALCS night into one they could control, especially with their offense creating traffic against Cleveland and putting pressure on the Guardians from the start.
Instead, Cleveland kept making the right pitches and plays when it mattered, and the game flipped in the middle innings before the Rays could respond. The loss left Tampa Bay with a 2-1 series deficit, a particularly painful outcome after letting a winnable game slip away at the worst possible time in the series. [Read more 🡒]