Rays Unsurprisingly Viewed as Overwhelming ALCS Favorites

The Tampa Bay Rays have been predicted to beat the Cleveland Guardians in the ALCS.

Jul 25, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Cleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan (38) slides to first base as Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda (8) tags him out during the first inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Pablo Robles-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Tampa Bay Rays will face the Cleveland Guardians in the ALCS, with the American League pennant and a trip to the World Series on the line.

In the ALDS, the Rays defeated the New York Yankees, sweeping their AL East rivals in three games. Tampa Bay played at an incredibly high level, controlling all three games as it never trailed once.

Things were a lot tougher for the Guardians, who went all five games against the Chicago White Sox. After losing Games 1 and 2 at home, Cleveland went on the road and won both games to even the series before taking the winner-take-all Game 5.

Heading into the ALCS, the Rays are viewed as overwhelming favorites in a piece shared by ESPN, where a panel of 15 experts was polled on how they believe the Championship Series will go this year.

Rays picked to beat Guardians

Oct 7, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; Tampa Bay Rays players celebrate after winning the ALDS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Some of them do believe the ALCS will be a competitive series, just one that Tampa Bay comes out ahead in. Out of the 14 people who picked the Rays to win, six of them believe the series will go six games.

That was tied with a five-game series for the most selections. One panelist believes this series will go seven games, and another believes it will be a four-game sweep. The one voter who selected the Guardians to win believes it will be a seven-game series.

Selections for ALCS MVP were also made, and it comes as no surprise that third baseman Junior Caminero is the overwhelming favorite for that award. The star slugger was selected by eight voters to be the MVP, with starting pitcher Drew Rasmussen being the only player to receive multiple votes, with four.

First baseman Jonathan Aranda, designated hitter Yandy Diaz and Cleveland star Jose Ramirez were the other players selected.

Guard the Bay

ALCS loading 🔜: https://t.co/PRqOFP75na pic.twitter.com/9XmpCVINGw

— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) October 11, 2026

This will be the first time many baseball fans will get to see Tampa Bay in action and be introduced to their star players. Caminero and Rasmussen are going to earn a lot of new fans during the ALCS, especially if they perform up to their capabilities.

Caminero has back-to-back seasons with 40+ home runs in his first two campaigns as a full-time Major League player. Rasmussen is coming off an eight-inning gem against the Yankees in the ALDS in which he carried a no-hitter through 7.2 innings of work.

A well-oiled machine that is fundamentally sound, the Rays have a great chance to advance to the World Series for the third time in franchise history.