Martinez tosses another gem to extend Rays' win streak against AL teams to 13

CLEVELAND – Three hours before the first pitch, heated Ping-Pong matches triggered mostly friendly trash talk between players as Weezer's carefree “Island In The Sun” played from a giant speaker inside Tampa Bay's clubhouse.

The mood was upbeat and playful. The vibes were good.

The Rays are having fun while stomping through the American League.

Nick Martinez pitched seven-plus scoreless innings and Tampa Bay's bullpen shut down Cleveland's late-inning threats as the Rays won their sixth straight game Tuesday night, 1-0, over the Guardians to spoil Travis Bazzana's much-hyped Major League debut with Cleveland.

In posting their first shutout and sixth one-run win of 2026, the Rays improved to 13-1 against AL opponents and joined Milwaukee (1987), Detroit (1984), Oakland (1981) and Cleveland (1966) for the best start vs. AL teams.

“It’s great," said Martinez, one of the newest Rays after he signed a one-year, $13 million deal with them in February. "Wins are important, right? It doesn’t matter how early in the season it is. If we can keep playing our style of baseball, we’re going to win a lot of games.”

Since losing to Minnesota on April 3, the Rays have reeled off 13 straight league wins – the longest streak since Cleveland won an MLB-record 22 consecutive in 2017 – while winning 10 in a row over AL Central foes, a franchise record.

They're doing it with strong starting pitching, clutch defense, timely hitting and baserunning, and a bullpen missing some parts.

Martinez delivered his second straight strong performance, limiting the Guardians to just three hits while keeping them off-balance with a nasty changeup that had Cleveland's hitters looking totally lost. The right-hander has allowed two runs or fewer in each of his six starts and lowered his ERA to 1.70 with his outing against Cleveland.

“That’s back-to-back starts for him where he’s had everything going," said manager Kevin Cash. "He’s executing at a very high rate right now and doing it incredibly efficiently. He earned every inning, because it felt like every inning he was under 10 pitches.”

Martinez was at just 72 pitches entering the eighth, when he issued a leadoff walk to Bazzana, the No. 1 overall pick in 2024, and was lifted by Cash. The Guardians loaded the bases against Ian Seymour before Kevin Kelly came in and retired José Ramírez on a fly ball to the warning track in center to end the scoring threat.

The Guardians had another chance in the ninth when Angel Martínez doubled off Cole Sulser with two outs and Bazzana was intentionally walked. Sulser, who was filling in with closer Bryan Baker unavailable after pitching Monday, then struck out pinch-hitter George Valera for his first save since 2022 with Miami.

A few minutes later, the Rays could be heard celebrating their latest gritty win through the closed clubhouse doors.

“We’re really vibing well. We’re jelling well as a team," said Sulser. "It’s a fun group of guys. We go out there and play together every night. We have each other’s backs, and it’s showing on the field.”

Cash and his staff sensed something special with this school of Rays during Spring Training. There were early team dinners that helped form bonds, and he appreciated how several of his veterans were going out of their way to mentor young players.

And as the wins have begun to pile up, Cash feels the internal belief building as well.

“They're gaining more confidence," he said. "We’ve played very well here as of late, for sure. We’re winning tight ballgames a lot, and when you can win tight ballgames, and there's no tighter than 1-0, you have no margin for error.

"I think it just continues to bring a group together that has already been together and they’re just feeding off each other.”

At 35, Martinez knows he doesn’t have many seasons left, which may explain why he’s enjoying Tampa Bay’s start so much.

“The young guys are hungry,” Martinez said. “For me, they give you energy and make you feel young again, and that's exciting. Everyone is pulling for each other and doing what the game asks of them. No one is taking any selfish at-bats or selfish pitches and just competing.”

The tight wins are also bringing the Rays tighter.

“That fortifies our bond, really,” he said. “These close games build character and we're coming out on top right now, and it brings a team closer together. We're into every single pitch and we're pulling for each other.”