The Rays needed a bounce-back performance Tuesday night at the ballpark in St. Petersburg, and Freddy Peralta delivered. Six scoreless innings from the right-hander kept Cleveland off the board while the Tampa Bay offense waited for its moment. That moment came in the fourth when a rare Jose Ramirez error allowed Victor Mesa Jr. to score the game’s first run. Liam Hicks followed with a two-run single, and the Rays had all the cushion they would need.
Cleveland finally broke through in the seventh on a Chase DeLauter RBI double, but Ian Seymour and Bryan Baker shut the door from there. The 3-1 final ties the ALCS at one game apiece and flips the series to Cleveland for Thursday’s Game 3 at 6 p.m. For a Rays team that has answered every doubt this season, it sets up the biggest road trip of the year.
This is the kind of playoff baseball that makes October so much fun for Suncoast fans. No blowouts, no easy innings, just pitching, defense, and one timely swing. The series is now a best-of-five, and every game from here feels like a Game 7.
What’s your confidence level heading into Game 3 in Cleveland? Let us know in the comments.
