Rays Take ALCS Lead over Guardians

Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images

October 18, 2026

Rays 3, Guardians 1

The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians, 3–1, Sunday evening at Progressive Field in Cleveland to claim a 3–2 lead in the ALCS. Yandy Diaz delivered two hits on the day, giving the Rays a bit of momentum. Now the series shifts to St. Petersburg, Florida for Game Six, which will take place Monday, with first pitch slated for 8:08 pm Eastern at Tropicana Field. Righty Freddy Peralta (1–0, 0.79 ERA) will get the ball for the Rays, while the Guardians have yet to name their starting pitcher for the game as of press time.

Rays – Guardians Game Summary

The Rays got on the board quickly in the top of the first against Parker Messick. Diaz lined a leadoff double to center. After Jonathan Aranda flied to center, Ryan Vilade joined Diaz on the base paths courtesy of a walk from Messick. Junior Caminero struck out swinging to bring up Chandler Simpson, who loaded the bases with a bunt single to Brayan Rocchio at short. After an unsuccessful ABS challenge by Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey, Jonny DeLuca drew a walk to force in Diaz.

The Rays scored again in the top of the second. Ben Williamson got the frame started with a single to right. On deck was Taylor Walls, who popped up to first baseman Nathaniel Lowe. Diaz followed with a single to right, moving Williamson to second. Up next was Aranda, who plated Williamson with a single to left.

The lead stretched to 3–0 in the top of the third off reliever Tim Herrin. Simpson opened the frame with a double to right and swiped third a moment later. It marked his second stolen base of the postseason. That brought up DeLuca, who grounded to third. Simpson scored on the next play when Liam Hicks singled up the middle.

The Guardians ended the Rays’ shutout bid in the top of the sixth with Drew Rasmussen on the mound. Steven Kwan and Jose Ramirez reached on back-to-back one-out singles. Kwan scored from third on a groundout to first by Chase DeLauter.

Reliever Bryan Baker came on in the ninth to close it out for the Rays. He only allowed one walk.

What Went Right for the Rays

The Rays continued their aggressive approach from Game Four in Sunday’s contest. They scored all of their runs before the fourth inning. DeLuca’s patience at the plate led to a run when his walk forced in Diaz. Hicks had a nice RBI single in the third that plated Simpson, and Aranda had his run-scoring single in the second.

Their pitching staff allowed five base runners and stranded them all, leaving the Guardians with an 0-for-3 clip with runners in scoring position.

What Went Wrong for the Rays

The Rays kept the Guardians silent until the sixth inning when Kwan scored on DeLauter’s groundout to first.

Pitching Notes

Rasmussen had a nice day as he collected his second win of the postseason. Over seven innings, he allowed one earned run on four hits and one walk while striking out six.

The save went to closer Baker, who surrendered the one free pass in the ninth.

Messick took the loss after pitching two innings, allowing two runs, both earned, on five hits and two walks while fanning three.

Cash’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rays manager Kevin Cash discussed Simpson’s bunt single in the first inning. “Yeah, I mean that’s Chandler,” he said. “One little hiccup. And I don’t even think (Brayan) Rocchio made a hiccup, it was just a double clutch right there. He’s going to beat every shortstop, middle infielder, third baseman in baseball, just how he gets out of the box.”

Vogt’s Postgame Comments

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt reflected on Parker Messick’s evening in his postgame interview. “Well, I think give a lot of credit to them,” he remarked. “They worked some really good at-bats. They shot him (Messick) the other way. Those guys did a really nice job of not trying to do too much off of him. Made him throw a lot of pitches and worked some walks. Command, again, wasn’t outstanding. But I thought, again, the velo is there. The ball’s moving the way he wants it to. Just not enough strikes, and they really made him work.”