Rays-Guardians ALCS Game 5: Tampa Bay jumps to 3-0 lead in Cleveland
The Rays and Guardians are tied 2-2 in the ALCS, and Tampa Bay grabbed an early 3-0 lead in Game 5 at Cleveland on Sunday.
A series tied at two, and no room for off days
The Rays and Guardians are back on the field for a pivotal Game 5 of the American League Championship Series, and Tampa Bay came out swinging. The series is tied 2-2 after the Rays' 7-3 win at Progressive Field on Saturday, and early in Game 5 the Rays built a 3-0 lead on the road, scoring first on a bases-loaded walk in the first inning before adding on against Guardians starter Parker Messick.
The stakes are plain. Whoever wins the ALCS plays Milwaukee in the World Series. If the Rays close this out, they head home to Tropicana Field, where they had the best home record in baseball this season, needing just one more win. If the Guardians win Game 5 instead, they are also a game away, with Gavin Williams available to start a potential game. Friday's rainout wiped out the usual travel day, so there is no break between Sunday's Game 5 in Cleveland and a possible Game 6 at the Trop on Monday.
Early action in Cleveland
Rays manager Kevin Cash sent Drew Rasmussen to the mound against Parker Messick. The Rays scored first in the bottom of the first on a bases-loaded walk, Jonathan Aranda followed with an RBI single to make it a two-run Tampa Bay lead, and the Rays pushed the score to 3-0 from there.
The game was still being played as this was written, so the final score is not yet known. What happens next depends on how Rasmussen and the Rays' bullpen hold that lead, and whether the Guardians can answer against a Tampa Bay pitching staff that has been hard to beat in this series.
The Rays' top bats finally got going
Entering Game 4, Tampa Bay's three most relied-upon hitters, Junior Caminero, Yandy Diaz and Jonathan Aranda, were a combined 5-for-34 with one RBI in the series. That changed Saturday. Diaz hit a double and added a two-run homer in the ninth for insurance, Aranda went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs, and Caminero drove in a run and hit a 110.7 mph shot to center field that would have left most parks on a warmer night.
The question hanging over Tampa Bay's bullpen
Cash turned to closer Bryan Baker to protect a four-run lead late in Game 4, and Baker got the job done. He had allowed just one hit and no runs across five appearances this postseason entering that outing, and he has given up exactly four earned runs since May 17. But with the rainout erasing the usual travel day, Baker will have had no rest between Game 4, Game 5 and a possible Game 6 at the Trop. His fastball was sitting around 92 to 93 miles per hour in Game 4, a number worth watching if Cash needs him again before this series is decided.