A trip to the World Series is down to one night, and Game 6 of the ALCS brings the Tampa Bay Rays back home with a 3-2 series lead over the Cleveland Guardians.
If you’re hunting for a home run prop in a playoff game, you’re dealing with a tough market. Managers lean hard on their bullpens in October, long balls are harder to come by, and Cleveland is adding another wrinkle Monday by turning the game into a bullpen effort. Tampa Bay will counter with Freddy Peralta, who has posted a sub-1.00 ERA in three appearances this postseason.
Still, there are a couple of bats worth targeting if you want to back a big swing.
Jonathan Aranda is starting to look dangerous again for Tampa Bay. After a quiet opening to the series, he has five hits over the last two games and nearly left the yard in the top of the ninth in Game 5 before Steven Kwan robbed him of what would have been a memorable postseason blast. The first baseman has clearly been seeing the ball well lately, and the Guardians’ bullpen has already taken a lot of work in this series.
There’s also a track record here. Aranda launched a big home run in Game 1 of the ALDS at home against Gerrit Cole, and he finished the regular season with 22 home runs. Given the way he’s swinging it since the start of Game 4, this price is appealing.
On the other side, Jose Ramirez deserves attention with Cleveland’s season hanging in the balance. He went 0-for-2 with a walk against Peralta in Game 2, but he has been 2-for-6 against the right-hander in his career during the regular season.
Ramirez also came through with a huge home run in Game 5 of the ALDS to help the Guardians seal that series, and his playoff résumé is long enough that the moment should not overwhelm him. Peralta has shown vulnerability to the long ball, allowing one against New York in the ALDS and 23 across 32 outings in the regular season.
Ramirez is batting .324 this postseason and already has seven hits in this series. With Cleveland staring at elimination, he’s in the mix as well.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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In Other News...
Junior Caminero Just Delivered A Statement The Rays Needed Most
Junior Caminero had been putting together the kind of at-bats the Rays could live with, even before the ball started leaving the yard. In Game 6, though, the production finally matched the process, as his two-run homer in the seventh inning stretched Tampa Bays lead to 5-1 at a crucial moment with the World Series in sight.
It was a welcome breakthrough for a young hitter who had been working through some earlier struggles, and it came with the sort of timely impact that can change the tone of a postseason run. Kevin Cash had already pointed to Camineros quality at-bats, and now the Rays have a reminder that even when the numbers have lagged, the contact has not gone away. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Turn To An Unexpected Arm In Must Win Game 6
The Guardians are reaching for a different look as their season hangs in the balance, turning to right-hander Shawn Armstrong as the opener for Game 6. It is the kind of October move that says plenty about where things stand, especially after Tampa Bay got a steady lift from Drew Rasmussen in Game 5, when he worked seven innings and allowed just one run.
Cleveland had hoped rookie Parker Messick could settle the matchup early, but he was gone after a brief outing and the margin for error only shrinks from here. Freddy Peralta is lined up to take the ball for Tampa Bay in Game 6 after a strong run of recent starts, leaving the Rays with a more familiar script and the Guardians searching for a way to keep the series alive. [Read more 🡒]
Yandy Diaz Just Added More Pressure To A Massive Rays Game 6
Yandy Diaz added a little more edge to an already pivotal night for the Rays by sounding convinced Tampa Bay will handle Game 6 of the ALDS against Cleveland. It comes with the series hanging in the balance and with Freddy Peralta set to take the mound for Tampa Bay, a welcome development for a club that has leaned on his strong work since he arrived and into October.
The matchup also has a different feel on the other side, where Cleveland is set to go with a bullpen day and Shawn Armstrong as the opener. With the Guardians having to patch together the outing, the Rays have a chance to put pressure on early and make Diaz's confidence feel more like a forecast than a wish. [Read more 🡒]