Tampa Bay Rays (Credits: ESPN)
The Tampa Bay Rays punished sloppy Cleveland defense on Saturday night, beating the Guardians 7-3 in Game 4 to even the ALCS at two games apiece and turn the series into a best-of-three.
Jonathan Aranda bounced back from an 0-for-10 start to the series with a three-hit night, driving in two runs and scoring twice as the Rays’ top of the order finally woke up.
Guardians’ Glove Lets Them Down
Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead in the sixth when Junior Caminero lined a double off the left-field wall off Daniel Espino to bring home Aranda. The floodgates opened in the seventh: Richie Palacios and Taylor Walls singled and executed a double steal, then Aranda’s single to right skipped under Chase DeLauter’s glove for an error, scoring both runners. Aranda went to third on the play and later scored on Chandler Simpson’s sacrifice fly to make it 5-1.
DeLauter had given Cleveland the early 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the first, but his seventh-inning misplay became the game’s turning point. Travis Bazzana also endured a rough night, committing a fielding error at second base even while hitting his first postseason home run.
Martinez Shuts the Door
On a 46-degree night at Progressive Field, Nick Martinez delivered the start of his postseason life, allowing just one run on two hits over 5 1/3 innings for his first career playoff win. After DeLauter’s first-inning single, Martinez retired 10 straight batters and carried the Rays deep into the game.
Cleveland pulled within 5-3 in the seventh on Bazzana’s solo homer and Brayan Rocchio’s RBI single, but Yandy Diaz put the game away with a two-run homer in the ninth off Matt Festa.
Game 5 goes Sunday at Progressive Field, with Drew Rasmussen starting for Tampa Bay against rookie left-hander Parker Messick. The series then shifts back to St. Petersburg for Game 6 on Monday.
Also Read: ALCS Game 4: Chase DeLauter’s RBI Gets Guardians on the Board First Against Rays
Source: ESPN — read the full story there.
