Rasmussen pitches Rays past Guardians 3-1: one win from World Series
Web StoryWatch this story in 15 seconds →Key takeaways
- Drew Rasmussen gave up one run in seven innings as Tampa Bay beat Cleveland 3-1 in Game 5.
- The Rays scored one run in each of the first three innings. They never gave up the lead.
- Tampa Bay leads the series 3-2. One more win sends the Rays to the World Series.
Tampa Bay is one win from the World Series. The Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 on Sunday, October 18. The game was Game 5 of the American League Championship Series.
That series picks the American League winner. The winner goes to the World Series. Drew Rasmussen pitched seven strong innings for Tampa Bay.
His team now leads the series 3-2.
What happened
The Rays scored early, and they scored often enough to win. They scored one run in the first inning. They scored one run in the second inning.
They scored one run in the third inning. Then their pitching did the rest.
Yandy Diaz started the game with a double. A double is a hit that gets the batter to second base. Diaz later scored the first run.
Cleveland pitcher Parker Messick walked Jonny DeLuca with the bases full. A walk sends the batter to first base for free. That walk forced in a run.
Tampa Bay led 1-0.
In the second inning, Jonathan Aranda hit a single. A single is a hit that gets the batter to first base. His hit scored Ben Williamson.
Tampa Bay led 2-0. In the third inning, Liam Hicks hit a single. His hit scored Chandler Simpson.
Simpson had started the inning with a double. Tampa Bay led 3-0.
Diaz had three hits in the game. Aranda had two hits. Hicks had two hits.
Each of them drove in a run. That means each of their hits scored a teammate.
Messick had a short night. He pitched only two innings. He gave up two runs on five hits.
He also walked two batters. He threw 57 pitches. It was the shortest start of his big league career.
A big league career means his time in Major League Baseball. Tim Herrin took over in the third inning. Tampa Bay scored its third run off him.
Rasmussen takes charge
Rasmussen was the star of the night. He pitched seven innings. He gave up one run on four hits.
He walked one batter. He struck out six batters. A strikeout means the pitcher gets the batter out on strikes.
He is now 2-0 in this postseason. He has a 1.29 ERA in three playoff starts. ERA is a number.
It shows how many runs a pitcher gives up per nine innings. A low ERA is good.
He was in full control early. Chase DeLauter got a two-out single in the first inning. After that, Rasmussen retired nine batters in a row.
To retire a batter means to get him out. He held Cleveland without a hit for a long stretch. His mix kept hitters off balance.
He used three kinds of fastballs. A fastball is a hard, fast pitch. He also used his changeup more.
A changeup is a slower pitch that looks like a fastball at first. It made hitters swing early or hit weak balls.
Cleveland scored its only run in the sixth inning. Steven Kwan hit a single. He later scored on a groundout by DeLauter.
A groundout is a play. The batter hits the ball on the ground and gets thrown out. The score was 3-1.
The seventh inning was the big test. Nathaniel Lowe started with a single. Then Rasmussen won a seven-pitch battle with rookie Travis Bazzana.
Bazzana hit a soft popout. A popout is a high, short fly ball that gets caught. Then Patrick Bailey hit into a double play.
A double play gets two outs on one play. The threat was over. Rasmussen had thrown 92 pitches.
His night was done.
Rasmussen has come back from three major arm surgeries. That is why this run means so much. In the last round, he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning.
It was against the New York Yankees. A no-hitter means no batter gets a hit. He finished that game with eight shutout innings.
Shutout means he gave up zero runs. He struck out 10 batters that night.
Rays manager Kevin Cash praised him after Game 5. "The way he limited anything was really, really impressive." That is what Cash told reporters in Cleveland.
USA TODAY reported his words. Diaz went further. "I really do think he's the best pitcher in MLB," said Diaz.
That is what Diaz said. USA TODAY reported his words. MLB stands for Major League Baseball.
The late innings
The Rays bullpen finished the job. The bullpen is the group of relief pitchers. Cam Booser pitched in the eighth inning.
He got two outs. Then Kwan hit a single. That brought Jose Ramirez to the plate.
Ramirez was the tying run. The tying run is the run that would tie the score.
Tampa Bay turned to Tyler Wells. Wells struck out Ramirez. He struck him out on a cutter.
A cutter is a fast pitch that moves late. It was the biggest out of the game. "It's probably the biggest at-bat of my career so far," said Wells.
That is what Wells said after the game. Yahoo Sports reported his words. An at-bat is one turn at the plate for a batter.
Bryan Baker pitched the ninth inning. He walked DeLauter to start the inning. Then he retired the next three batters.
He earned his fifth save of this postseason. A save means the closer finishes a close win. It was also his 35th straight save.
The game ended on a groundout by Bazzana. The final score was 3-1.
Cleveland had only five hits in the whole game. The Rays pitchers gave up five hits in total. Kwan had two of them.
He also made two fine plays in the field. He threw out Taylor Walls at home plate in the fourth inning. He also made a leaping catch at the center field wall.
That catch took away extra bases from Victor Mesa Jr.
Two Cleveland players set marks in the game. Ramirez reached base for the 17th straight playoff game. That broke the Cleveland team record.
DeLauter tied a team record. He has 11 hits this postseason. That ties the most hits by a rookie in one postseason for Cleveland.
Why it matters
This win changed the series. The two teams had traded wins in the first four games. Tampa Bay won Game 2.
Cleveland won Games 1 and 3. Tampa Bay won Game 4 7-3. Now Tampa Bay has won two games in a row.
Both wins came in Cleveland. The Rays have the series lead for the first time.
The Rays are chasing their third pennant. A pennant is the league title. They last won it in 2020.
They are also chasing their first World Series title. The Rays started play in 1998. They are one of five MLB teams with no World Series title.
This win puts them one step away.
History favors Tampa Bay now. The series grew to seven games in 1985. Since then, this spot has been strong for road teams.
Teams that win Game 5 for a 3-2 lead have a strong record. They have won the series four times in five tries. Cleveland has never won this series when trailing 3-2.
The numbers do not decide games. But they show how steep the climb is for Cleveland.
The game also showed the gap between the two starting pitchers. Both men are in the Cy Young talk. The Cy Young Award goes to the best pitcher in each league.
Messick is a rookie. A rookie is a player in his first full season. His command failed him on Sunday.
Command means throwing the ball where you want it. Tampa Bay made him throw 31 pitches in the first inning. They made him throw 26 more in the second.
That is a lot of work in a short time. Cleveland had to use its bullpen early. Tampa Bay's starter went deep.
That saved the Rays bullpen for the next games.
The series has been a test of pitching depth. A Friday rainout pushed Game 4 back. That forced the teams toward four games in four days.
There was no travel day. In that kind of stretch, a seven-inning start is gold. Rasmussen gave his team just that.
He also gave the bullpen a rest.
What happens next
The series moves back to Florida. Game 6 is on Monday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg.
Tampa Bay will start Freddy Peralta. Peralta pitched well in Game 2. He also made a short relief outing in Game 4.
Cleveland has not named a starter. Manager Stephen Vogt said Gavin Williams is not an option on short rest. Williams threw 70 pitches on Thursday.
His speed dipped late in that game. Cleveland must sort out its pitching plan fast.
If Tampa Bay wins Game 6, the series is over. The Rays will face the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series. Milwaukee won the National League title.
The World Series starts Friday. If Cleveland wins Game 6, there will be a Game 7. Game 7 would be on Tuesday.
It would also be in St. Petersburg. Cleveland would need to win twice on the road to stay alive.
The Rays have two chances to finish the job at home. Their ace has done his part. Their bats scored early in Game 5.
Their bullpen held the lead. One more win like that, and Tampa Bay is back in the World Series. Want more on how this series got here?
See our ALCS preview. Also see the World Series schedule.
Tampa Bay is close now. But close is not done. Cleveland has fought back all series.
Game 6 will give us the answer. Will the Rays finish the job at home? Or will this series go to one last game?
Related stories
Why Is Altitude Sickness Worse for Some People?
Altitude sickness hits some people harder because of genetics, ascent speed, and prior history, not fitness level. Here is what raises risk
Why Do You Get Blisters When Hiking and How to Prevent Them
Friction plus moisture plus heat equals a blister. Learn why hiking breeds all three, and the boots, socks, and tape system that keeps
How to choose hiking boots for beginners: fit, features, and break-in
Beginners should buy for fit first: snug everywhere, tight nowhere, with a thumb's width at the toes. Here is how to size, test,