Guardians vs Rays:
The Tampa Bay Rays will visit the Cleveland Guardians in the opener of their three-game, winner-take-all wild card series in the American League.
The Rays have lost their last five MLB games. Ironically, however, three of the last four teams to reach the postseason with a similar streak advanced to the World Series, according to Elias Sports Bureau. The other three were the Detroit Tigers (2006), New York Yankees (2000) and Minnesota Twins (1987).
Tampa Bay has the lowest embasement percentage (.308), slugging (.377) and OPS (.686) of the 12 playoff teams. However, the Guardians are the betting underdog (-125) according to Caesars Sportsbook, of all three-game series.
Cleveland connected on just 127 home runs this season. That’s the lowest total among the 12 postseason outfits and the second-lowest in all of MLB in 2022 (ahead of only the Tigers with 110).
Our experts give their respective analyses of a series that promises many Latino protagonists.
- Who comes out on top and why?
The Rays (third wild card with a record of 86-76) face the Guardians (Central Division champions with 90-72) in the American League Wild Card Series at Progressive Field, the home of the latter.
Friday’s and Saturday’s games are scheduled to start a little after noon and the third, if necessary . Just like the rest of the series.
The Rays come into this new phase of the postseason at an apparent disadvantage. Kevin Cash’s team lost its last five regular series games and due to its wild card status, will be forced to play the entire series in Cleveland. However, in a series between two teams that had fairly similar performances, the Rays are my favorites to advance to the Division Series.
The pitching of both, which is their strength, was among the best in the league. Tampa Bay was third (3.41) and Cleveland fourth (3.46) in earned run average. Cleveland edged Tampa Bay in runs produced (698 to 666), but narrowly. On the season, the Guardians won the particular series 4-2, scoring 22 and allowing 18.
Horses Shane McLanahan and Shane Bieber will collide on Friday in a game that could go either way. The difference in the series, in Tampa Bay’s favor, could be the presence of star right-hander Tyler Glasnow, who had two shortened appearances in recent days, returning from Tommy John surgery. Glasnow struck out 10 batters and barely conceded a run in 6.2 innings and earned the ball for the second game of the series.
- Who (or which one) will be the X-factor in the series?
For Tampa Bay, Randy Arozarena. October is the month of the Cuban and his numbers prove it: in 29 previous playoff games he averages .354, with 11 home runs, 17 RBI and an offensive line of .436/.760/1.197. If he is on, he can win the game with the bat, with the glove and sometimes with those risky baserunning runs. To become Mr. October again, Arozarena will have to exorcise his demons in Cleveland, where for some reason he didn’t see the ball: he batted .044 (1-23) with 12 strikeouts in six games against the Guardians, including 13-0 with seven strikeouts at Progressive Field.
For Cleveland, youth. The average age of this version of the Guardians was 26.0, their leader, Jose Ramirez, just turned 30 and there’s not much collective playoff experience. Ramirez, in fact, is the only member of the team that played in the 2016 World Series. It can be a double-edged sword to have a bunch of little guys on the field playing three home playoff games. But these guys know how to play, they’re not afraid of pressure, and they put the ball in play: they struck out the least in all of Major League Baseball. (Hiram Martinez)
- (Ramírez-Clase) or (Arozarena-Franco): Which duo will be more decisive?
The first, that of Ramirez and Emmanuel Clase.
Ramirez (126 RBI and 20+ swipes) joined Albert Belle as the only players in Cleveland history with at least 125 RBI and 20+ swipes in a season since 1920. Ramirez also became the first MLB player to reach both milestones in a season since Matt Kemp (39 HR, 40 swipes) did it for the Dodgers in 2011.
