This story was excerpted from Adam Berry’s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
HOUSTON -- The Rays were six outs away from spraying champagne at Progressive Field on Thursday night. They took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and carried it into the eighth, getting close to starting a celebration that surely would have lasted throughout their flight to Houston.
But the Guardians did their thing, and Tampa Bay’s magic number remained at one: one win or one Baltimore loss away from a fourth straight trip to the postseason.
“The disappointment was we were up 1-nothing in the eighth inning, and we lost,” said manager Kevin Cash.
The Rays are bound to clinch soon. It could even happen Friday at Minute Maid Park, perhaps before the game ends if the Orioles fall to the Yankees. While we wait, let’s look at four more things the Rays need to accomplish during the season’s final days.
1) Try to secure home-field advantage
Tampa Bay entered Friday two games behind the Blue Jays, who hold the top American League Wild Card spot. Because the Rays won the season series, 10-9, they just need to finish tied with Toronto to claim the No. 4 seed in the AL postseason field and host a best-of-three Wild Card Series at Tropicana Field.
The Rays went 51-30 at home compared to their current 34-41 record on the road, with six more to go. That’s a huge swing without even considering the added difficulty of continuing an already-lengthy road trip and the atmosphere they’d experience in Toronto, Seattle or Cleveland, where they just lost two of three.
2) Find a rhythm at the plate
The Rays flew to Houston having scored one run in four of their past five games. They’re averaging 3.54 runs per game since Sept. 3, with two runs or fewer in half of their 26 games during that time. They’ve found plenty of doubles in September, but no team has hit fewer homers this month.
None of that is certain to carry over into the postseason, but it’s a tough way to finish. The Rays don’t need a ton of offense to support their pitching, and it’s entirely possible that Randy Arozarena and Wander Franco could get hot and carry them. But they need to find it somewhere, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt to find it soon.
3) Line up the aces
Shane McClanahan has given up nine runs in nine innings over his previous two starts, giving him a 4.26 ERA in the second half. Tyler Glasnow has thrown three innings in the big leagues since last June. It would really be encouraging to see McClanahan back in ace form and get Glasnow stretched out a little more before they start the Rays’ biggest games of the year.
If they’re on, they’re as dangerous as any duo in baseball. And the guys likely to start behind them? Oh, just Jeffrey Springs (2.45 ERA) and Drew Rasmussen (2.85 ERA). The Rays have every reason to feel good about their postseason rotation.
4) Get as healthy as possible
This begins with Yandy Díaz, their only hitter with an OPS above .800 this season. He’s a key presence atop their lineup, and he returned to the starting lineup, leading off at designated hitter in Friday’s series opener.
It’ll also help the bullpen to get back lefty Jalen Beeks, currently on the 15-day IL. Beeks is a potential weapon who can work in a variety of roles, and he’s posted a 2.80 ERA with 70 strikeouts in 61 innings over 42 appearances this year.