Rays Beat Guardians to Set Up First-Time Winner World Series With Brewers
Tampa Bay is going back to the World Series. Milwaukee was already waiting.
The Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-3 in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series on 19 Oct. in Tampa Bay to win the pennant. The ALCS is a best-of-seven series, with four wins needed to advance. Tampa Bay will now face the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series, The Guardian.
Junior Caminero and Yandy Díaz supplied the power. Each hit a two-run homer in the clincher. Freddy Peralta covered 5.1 innings on the mound for Tampa Bay to keep Cleveland from building momentum.
The Rays had to work for it. Cleveland took Game 1 by 7-3, MLB.com. Tampa Bay tied the series with another 7-3 final in Game 4. Peralta played a smaller but sharp role in that one, recording two key outs in relief to protect a one-run lead. Drew Rasmussen then helped Tampa Bay to a 3-1 win in Game 5, which gave the Rays a 3-2 series lead heading home, Reuters.
Milwaukee took a shorter road. The Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in four games in the National League Championship Series. They closed it out with a 6-4 win to reach the World Series, MLB.com. Jake Bauers was named MVP of that series, the award for the most valuable player in the round.
The result guarantees a first-time champion. Both Tampa Bay and Milwaukee are seeking their first-ever World Series title. Tampa Bay is advancing for the third time in the franchise's 29 seasons. Milwaukee is back for the first time since 1982.
The matchup is historic in another way. It is the first World Series between two teams without a title since the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Kansas City Royals in 1980. For Cleveland, the defeat extends a World Series championship drought to 78 years.
For fans, this means something simple and rare. No repeat winner. No recent champion defending the crown. The best-of-seven World Series opens Friday night in Milwaukee, and one fan base will celebrate for the first time.
