3 Rays Players Who Need To Step up Against Guardians

The Tampa Bay Rays are facing their first adversity of the postseason in the ALCS against the Cleveland Guardians.

After sweeping the New York Yankees in their ALDS matchup and not trailing once, the Rays have been defeated by the Guardians twice in three games. Game 3 was the first time Tampa Bay didn’t score first in a game as well.

Cleveland is proving to be a much tougher opponent for the Rays, given that their style of play is similar to that of Tampa Bay. Heading into Game 4, the Rays need some of their key contributors to step up.

Here are three players the team needs to have a big game to even the series at 2-2 heading into Game 5.

Jonathan Aranda

Yandy Diaz, who hits leadoff in the lineup, has been excellent at setting the table. Unfortunately, Jonathan Aranda, who hits second, has not been able to follow suit and has struggled mightily in the ALCS.

He has gone hitless through three games, going 0-for-10 with three strikeouts. It is certainly a disappointing turn of events after he recorded at least one hit in all three games against the Yankees, including a solo home run off Gerrit Cole in a 1-0 win in Game 1.

Aranda has not looked comfortable during his at-bats, chasing a lot of pitches outside of the zone. This lineup is heavily reliant on their Big 3, and when one of those players is struggling, generating offense can be a major challenge.

Nick Martinez

Taking the ball for Tampa Bay as their Game 4 starter is Nick Martinez. He has been excellent all season long, surpassing all expectations placed on him as he earned a spot on the AL All-Star Team and anchored this staff alongside Drew Rasmussen all year.

Now, it is up to him to pitch the team into a tie in the ALCS. Starting pitching has been a strength for the Rays before Griffin Jax ran into some issues in Game 3. Rasmussen allowed only two runs in six innings, and Freddy Peralta threw six shutout innings in Game 2.

Martinez isn’t going to overpower opponents, relying on soft contact and strong defense behind him. Manager Kevin Cash will rely on him to go as deep as he can, but Tyler Wells and Steven Matz were the only relievers used in Game 3, so he has nearly his full allotment of bullpen arms to use.

Junior Caminero

As stated earlier, Tampa Bay needs its Big 3 to be operating at a high level to win games. Right now, only one of them is, and Junior Caminero is struggling to find his rhythm as well.

Could that collision in Game 1 with Jonny DeLuca be having some lingering effect on him? He had an uncharacteristic performance in Game 3, going down on strikes in all four of his at-bats. One thing he has done well this season was not chasing pitches out of the zone, but he was not showing that patience last time out.

The Rays need him locked in and producing. He has yet to hit a home run this postseason, and there would be no better time than Game 4 to help even up the series.

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