ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays are back in the World Series.
On Monday night, they closed out the Guardians with a 7-3 win in Game 6 of the ALCS, locking down the American League crown and sending themselves to the Fall Classic for the second time in franchise history. The timing made it all the sweeter: it was exactly 18 years to the day after Oct. 19, 2008, when Tampa Bay earned its first World Series berth.
Now the Rays get Milwaukee. The Brewers swept the back-to-back defending champion Dodgers in the NLCS, setting up a World Series matchup that will produce a first-time champion no matter what.
The Brewers have never won the World Series since joining the league in 1980, and the Rays, who came into MLB in ’98, are chasing the same first title. Game 1 is set for Friday at 8 p.m.
ET at American Family Field, and the Brewers will be working with a long layoff after clinching on Oct. 15.
The night’s defining swing came from Junior Caminero, who crushed a two-run homer off the left-field foul pole in the seventh inning. It was the kind of moment that stops a ballpark cold, then sends it roaring into chaos.
Caminero paused in front of first base, turned toward his dugout, and let the noise wash over him before continuing around the bases. Then, just before home plate, he stopped again, pointed toward the fans behind the dish and crossed his arms in the pose made famous by former Rays star Randy Arozarena, who was in the stands.
But the tone had actually been set earlier by Richie Palacios. In the second inning, he ripped a two-run double into the right-center gap, a gritty at-bat that fit the Rays’ style perfectly.
Palacios came in having been battered by left-handers this season - they had held him to a .158 average and .478 - and he spent the early part of the plate appearance battling off pitches and checking swings before finally getting one he could drive. When the ball hit the gap and he slid into second, helmet flying off behind him, he turned back toward the dugout and let out a roar.
By the time Yandy Díaz added a two-run blast to left field in the bottom of the eighth, the place was already unglued. The homer wiped away any threat the Guardians had put together in the top half, and the crowd responded with chants of “Yandy!
Yandy! Yandy!”
until Díaz came out for a curtain call.
The Rays didn’t just get timely power. They controlled the game from start to finish, leaning on the same ingredients that carried them through the series: Chandler Simpson’s speed, Taylor Walls’ defense and a pitching staff that keeps opposing offenses from ever settling in.
Freddie Peralta did his part again, too, allowing one run over 5 1/3 innings after tossing six shutout frames in his Game 2 win. Across from him, the Guardians used a bullpen game led by Shawn Armstrong, and they never managed to build the kind of offensive momentum they needed.
Cleveland came in hot, with José Ramírez leading a lineup that had been scorching late in the season and in the ALCS. But Tampa Bay kept taking away oxygen, and that’s what this team does best. The Guardians are a strong club coming off a deep run that included an ALDS comeback over the White Sox, but on this stage, they ran into a Rays team that was better and deeper.
Even so, there’s plenty for Cleveland to carry forward. Ramírez remains the face of the franchise, rookie Chase DeLauter has emerged as one of the best young outfielders in the American League, and the pitching group features Gavin Williams, Parker Messick and closer Cade Smith.
The larger reality is harder to swallow: the longest title drought in Major League Baseball will continue into its 78th year. The Guardians haven’t won the World Series since 1948, despite appearances in 1954, 1995 and 1998 and seven trips to the ALCS.
For the Rays, this was the kind of night that can define a season. Tropicana Field had not sounded like that in years, and now Tampa Bay is four wins from a championship.
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 🡒]
Rays One Win Away As Game 6 Bat Could Change Everything
The Rays head into Game 6 with a chance to punch their ticket to the World Series, and the questions around how this one plays out are as much about power as they are about pressure. Tampa Bay has leaned on timely offense all series, and as the matchup shifts again, the focus lands on whether this game turns into one of those nights when a single swing can tilt everything.
Jonathan Aranda has become one of the more intriguing names in the conversation after what he has done at the plate lately, while Cleveland still has Jos Ramrez as the kind of bat that can change the tone of a postseason game in one at-bat. On the mound, Freddy Peralta gives Tampa Bay a strong starting point, and Clevelands bullpen approach means the Rays may not get many clean looks before the late innings decide whether the series ends here or heads back for one more round. [Read more 🡒]