Rays set themselves up for perfect pitching scenario by winning ALCS in 6 games
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ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays had every reason to celebrate their 7-3 win over the Guardians in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series late Monday night and perhaps well into Tuesday morning.
They won the AL pennant for the third time and advanced to the World Series for the first time since 2020. They got to celebrate in front of a raucous, sold-out crowd at Tropicana Field. They continued to silence all the preseason, in-season and postseason doubts about the sustainability of their success.
Plus, they made Yandy Díaz look like a prophet. His bold prediction after Game 5 came true.
Here’s another thing they could appreciate, even if they didn’t say it amid all the revelry inside their clubhouse and under The Trop’s domed roof: They avoided a dreaded all-hands-on-deck Game 7 and got an extra day to rest up for the incredibly well-rested National League champions waiting their turn in Milwaukee.
“It's easy to appreciate what we're getting ready to go do next and the challenges that lie ahead. That's a great team,” manager Kevin Cash said during his postgame press conference on Monday night. “But for tonight, probably more appreciate the guys that you go to work with on a daily basis and realize what has just been accomplished.”
The Brewers made short work of the Dodgers in the NLCS, putting together a four-game sweep that ended last Thursday night in Los Angeles. They’re getting a full week of rest ahead of World Series Game 1 on Friday night at American Family Field in Milwaukee.
That means the Brewers have been able to get healthy, enjoy a little physical (and mental) break from the relentless grind of a long postseason series and line up their pitching for the best-of-seven Fall Classic.
But if you look a little closer, the Rays aren’t in such terrible shape, either.
Ace Drew Rasmussen last pitched in Game 5 of the ALCS on Sunday evening in Cleveland. The Rays haven’t set their rotation, but Rasmussen could start on normal rest (four days between starts) opposite Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski in Game 1 on Friday.
The Rays have shown a preference for providing Rasmussen with extra rest, as they did by not moving him up in the order following a postponement in the ALCS, but he’s been able to enjoy that this postseason.
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His AL Division Series Game 1 start came on 10 days’ rest, and a sweep of the Yankees afforded him the opportunity to take eight days off before his ALCS Game 1 assignment against the Guardians. When Tampa Bay elected to stick with Nick Martinez in Game 4, even when it was played a day later than scheduled, Rasmussen got to return with five days of rest.
Asked by reporter Lauren Shehadi after Monday’s clinching victory about his schedule for the next few days, Rasmussen replied, “Throw a bullpen and figure out what game I get to start.”
Even if he’s not tipping his hand, it seems likely that the Rays will give their ace a third straight Game 1 start in the World Series.
The benefits extend beyond that, however. ALCS MVP Freddy Peralta could theoretically face his former team in Milwaukee in Game 2, as he would also have four days to prepare between Monday’s outing and Saturday’s contest at American Family Field. That might be the logical thing to do, given the importance of that game and how well Peralta has been pitching for Tampa Bay over the past seven weeks.
Then again, the Rays have done what they can to start Peralta inside their home dome this month. And he could theoretically still make two starts in the series if he pitches Game 3 on Monday instead of Game 2.
“We'll think about that in a few days,” president of baseball operations Erik Neander said. “Tonight, just grateful that he put us on his back for two [starts] in this series.”
Regardless, there’s an additional benefit to finishing the ALCS in six games. They can give closer Bryan Baker a couple days off after he pitched in three straight games to finish the series, and a little break surely can’t hurt the handful of high-leverage arms they leaned on, like lefty Cam Booser.
The Rays also avoided having to potentially use starters Griffin Jax and Nick Martinez -- and likely both -- in Game 7. So, Jax hasn’t pitched since his ALCS Game 3 start last Thursday, and Martinez hasn’t pitched since starting Game 4 last Friday.
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That means both will be rested and ready for the possibility of early series bullpen work before slotting back into the starting rotation. The Rays rode their starters to great effect in their first two series, so it’s easy to imagine them employing the same strategy in another long series.
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“They just want to help. They want to contribute,” Cash said before Game 6. “Not that we had this planned out by any stretch, but we knew that we were going to need to lean heavily on all five of our healthy starters at the end of the season to get where we were hoping to get.”