Rays can't vanquish Yanks, take ALDS to limit
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When the Rays got word that the Yankees would be their opponent in the American League Division Series, they felt confident about the matchup, having gone 8-2 vs. the Yankees during the regular season. But it hasn’t taken long for Tampa Bay to recognize just how difficult it will be to come out on top in the postseason fight between two AL East foes.
That heavyweight battle will be decided on Friday in a win-or-go-home Game 5, as the Rays were unable to close out the series in Game 4 on Thursday in a 5-1 loss at Petco Park.
“It’s going to be intense. It’s going to be fun,” Rays shortstop Willy Adames said. “It’s a do-or-die, win-or-go-home. We don’t want to go home, so we’re going to do our best to win tomorrow and continue to play. We have to win the game.”
| Game | Date | Result | Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gm 1 | Oct. 5 | NYY 9, TB 3 | Watch |
| Gm 2 | Oct. 6 | TB 7, NYY 5 | Watch |
| Gm 3 | Oct. 7 | TB 8, NYY 4 | Watch |
| Gm 4 | Oct. 8 | NYY 5, TB 1 | Watch |
| Gm 5 | Oct. 9 | TB 2, NYY 1 | Watch |
Shop for postseason gear: The last time the Rays’ offense faced Yankees starter Jordan Montgomery, the left-hander allowed four runs on five hits and retired just two batters. That seemed to bode well in Game 4 for a Rays lineup that had hit seven home runs over the last two games.
On Thursday, however, the Rays’ offense had a pair of key opportunities to get to Montgomery and force New York to go to the bullpen early, but he was able to hold Tampa Bay to just one run over four innings.
“We had some opportunities, but that big hit just eluded us for whatever reason,” said Rays manager Kevin Cash. “When he really needed to, it looked like he had the ability to really make some pitches. I actually thought our at-bats were pretty good, we just weren’t able to capitalize on the baserunners that we had on base.”
The big opportunity came in the third inning. Adames drew a leadoff walk, which was followed by a Kevin Kiermaier double. Mike Zunino, who has been a big offensive contributor in the postseason, struck out on a 3-2 changeup for the first out. Montgomery then walked Yandy Díaz to load the bases before getting Brandon Lowe and Randy Arozarena to ground out, limiting the damage to just one run.
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Once Montgomery got through four, the Yankees went to their three-headed monster of Chad Green, Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman, holding the Rays without a hit after Ji-Man Choi’s leadoff single in the fourth. Overall, the Rays’ offense recorded just three hits, the fewest in six postseason games. Tampa Bay also recorded only four hard-hit balls against Montgomery and went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position.
“He was mixing pitches well,” Adames said of Montgomery. “He was attacking the hitters, and he was getting ahead of the hitters, and he just pitched really well against us tonight.”
While the offense disappeared on Thursday, the Rays’ pitching plans didn’t quite pan out, either. The Rays went 6-1 in seven "opener" games during the regular season, but the plan didn’t click when Tampa Bay needed it most. Ryan Thompson opened Thursday, but the right-hander allowed two runs in 1 2/3 innings. Thompson struck out two in the first inning, but he struggled with command in the second, which ultimately allowed the Yankees to take an early 2-0 lead, and they never looked back.
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“With their lineup being stacked so heavily right-handed, we wanted to get as much as possible out of him,” Cash said, when asked why Thompson started the second inning before Ryan Yarbrough took over and allowed a Gleyber Torres two-run homer over five innings. “We were going to try and get him a time through the order.”
Though the Rays fell short in Game 4, they will get another opportunity to make their first trip to the AL Championship Series since 2008 on Friday. They will be starting Tyler Glasnow on two days' rest in Game 5, but the club will have an “all-hands-on-deck” approach, according to Cash. That includes using Blake Snell and possibly Charlie Morton if the situation presents itself. The Stable will also be lurking out of the bullpen.
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As Adames stated after the game, “nobody said it was going to be easy.”
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That statement rings particularly true as the Rays will have to get past Gerrit Cole, who will get the Game 5 start for the Yankees on three days’ rest. Cole, who allowed three runs and struck out eight in the Yankees’ Game 1 win on Monday, was responsible for ending the Rays’ season in last year’s ALDS as a member of the Astros. Cole was the winning pitcher in that Game 5 as the right-hander tossed a one-run, 10-strikeout masterpiece in Houston's 6-1 win.
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“I think we know him a little bit better now,” Cash said. “We know them, they know us. We know he’s a talented pitcher, and he’ll be dialed up. We’ve got to come out and have some really good at-bats against him, as we’ve shown in the past, and go from there.”
Having Cole on the mound has the Yankees as the favorites. It even encouraged Luke Voit, who homered off Thompson on Thursday, to call his team’s shot: “We’re going to win it.”
The Rays, however, have other plans. They will go into Game 5 believing they’re a much better team than they were a year ago. Tampa Bay hasn’t lost consecutive games since Sept. 7-8 against the Nationals, and the club is not expecting that streak to be snapped on Friday. The Rays have 10 wins against the Yankees this season, but No. 11 would be the biggest one of them all.
“We’ve battled with them ever since I’ve been here,” Glasnow said. “They’re a great team. I don’t think anybody came in here expecting anything less. It’s been challenging for both sides.”
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