The AL-best Rays are a formidable foe. How do the Guards match up?

CLEVELAND – The celebration at Progressive Field rightfully lasted into the early hours of Sunday morning for the Guardians after knocking off the White Sox, 2-0, in Game 5 of the American League Division Series. But the turnaround will be quick.

As a reward for pulling off the first comeback from a 0-2 series deficit in franchise history, the Guardians are now set for an AL Championship Series showdown with a powerhouse Rays squad less than 48 hours later, with Game 1 scheduled for Monday night at Tropicana Field.

The Rays entered the postseason as the class of the AL, having essentially performed as the best club on this side from start to finish during the regular season. Tampa Bay carried that excellence into the ALDS as it made quick work of the Yankees over a three-game sweep.

So how do the Guardians stack up? Well, the regular-season matchups didn’t go great, as Tampa Bay won the season series, 5-1, and outscored Cleveland, 20-8. Outside of an 11-3 Rays blowout win on July 24, however, every other game between the clubs this season was decided by three runs or fewer. Half of those contests were decided by just one run, two of those being 1-0 Tampa Bay victories.

The Rays will have had four days off heading into Monday’s Game 1. That leaves Tampa Bay ace Drew Rasmussen rested as he looks to follow up a gem in Game 1 of the ALDS in which he allowed just one hit across eight scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts against the Yankees. Freddy Peralta and Nick Martinez are the starters likely to follow Rasmussen in Games 2 and 3.

Meanwhile, Cleveland going all five games in the ALDS means it is likely without co-aces Gavin Williams and Parker Messick as options to start Game 1. That assignment could go to left-hander Foster Griffin, who was heroic out of the bullpen in Game 3 of the ALDS for the Guardians by racking up seven strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings.

Tampa Bay’s lineup features sluggers near the top, including Yandy Díaz and Jonathan Aranda. But the Rays are also excellent at executing small ball. They make productive outs, move runners over, run the bases aggressively and will drop down bunts at any time. Spearheading the offense, though, is superstar Junior Caminero, whose history of being signed by Cleveland in 2019 before getting traded to Tampa Bay in ‘21 will surely become a talking point.

“We have to get him out,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said. “I’m not looking forward to that. But I’m glad we have the opportunity to try.”

Cleveland’s offense got off to a slow start in the ALDS, but it showed encouraging signs as it went on with increased success at the plate by Jo Adell, Steven Kwan, Chase DeLauter and, of course, José Ramírez. The club will have to build on that performance to take down the Rays in this best-of-seven series.

On the mound, Williams and Messick both had success against the Rays during the regular season. Williams led the Guardians to their lone win against Tampa Bay this season by allowing just an unearned run in 7 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts on April 29. Messick had two strong outings in losses to the Rays, allowing one run with nine strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings on April 27 and one run with six strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings on July 26.

Just like Caminero can be an X-factor for the Rays, Ramírez will enter the ALCS swinging a hot bat. After going hitless in his first two ALDS games, Ramírez powered the Guardians to three straight wins in Games 3-5 by going 5-for-12 with four extra-base hits, including two homers, seven RBIs and five runs scored.

Ramírez will be ready. But to take down the Rays, he can’t do it alone.