October 21:
The Big Ray Machine rolls on as the team which has averaged 9 runs/game going back to Game 2 of the ALDS scored 9 runs to throttle the Los Angeles Angels 9-1 and move to within one win away of its 3rd straight World Series. For only the third time in those games they paired great starting pitching with the lethal offense as Matt Manning pitched maybe his best postseason game as a Ray going 8 6 1 1 1 6 and looking for the first time in a while like the pitcher who won the 2024 AL Cy Young and still might win it in 2025. His only blemish was a 7th inning HR from Mike Trout. Manning was in command but he had a lot of runs to work with as the Rays scored all 9 of their runs in the first 4 innings. Vidal Brujan was the offensive star with a 2-run double in 2nd and a 2-run triple in the 3rd, Austin Meadows kept his .500 postseason batting average by going 2-4 with an RBI, Keibert Ruiz had a key RBI double and Brandon Marsh went 3-5 with an RBI. They had 16 hits with only Nick Gonzales (0-5 with 3 whiffs) failing to notch a safety. One down note, though: the red-hot Hunter Bishop had to leave with back tightness in the 2nd inning (he still had a hit in his only at-bat) and is DtD for a week. Heston Kjerstad took over and didn't miss a beat, going 2-3 with a walk in Bishop's place. And I also have to keep reminding myself that this team is scoring like mad in the postseason despite missing perhaps the league's best player in Wander Franco. Mitchell White, who saved the season with 8 shutout innings in Game 4 of the ALDS, will now look to close it out tomorrow.
The NLCS:
Whereas the Rays look to be all but in the World Series, the NL's spot is up for grabs as the Cards have come back to tie up the series at 2. Johan Oviedo, who spent most of the year in AAA, went 7 6 0 0 0 9 to dominate the Braves. Nick Senzel and Dylan Carlson drove in 2 runs apiece to pace the St. Louis offense.
October 22:
The Rays completed the sweep with a convincing 7-2 win over the Angels to advance to their third straight World Series, joining the 1998-2001 Yankees as the only teams to appear in three or more straight fall classics over the last 25 seasons. They outscored the Angels 39-10 over the four games in a real show of force. Mitchell White got the start and although he wasn't as effective as in his ALDS start, he kept getting out of jams with key strikeouts, twice of Alex Verdugo with two men on and two out. But he ran up a pitch count and after giving up a Shohei Ohtani homer in the 5th and then two straight singles, was pulled at 92 pitches with a 4.1 10 2 2 1 7 line. With the Rays' lead at the time only 5-2, Liam Hendriks came on and got a couple of big strikeouts to end the inning and then Nick Gonzales made it a not-close game again with a 2-run shot to make it 7-2 in the top of the 6th. Hendriks stayed on for a perfect 6th and then Nick Anderson and Jose Alvarado combined to pitch the final 3 innings. Aside from the bats, the story this postseason for the Rays has been the bullpen, and tonight Hendriks, Anderson and Alvarado combined to go 4.2 1 0 0 0 10, about as dominant as it gets. The offense actually went a whole first inning without scoring and trailed 1-0 going into the 2nd before Alec Bohm (who hit the series-clinching walk-off HR in Game 6 of the 2023 ALCS against the Angels) hit his first HR of the postseason to tie it. And the tie was broken by Spencer Torkelson in the 3rd with a 2-run double, a run was balked in, and Keston Hiura had an RBI single to suddenly make it 5-1. Now they await the Cardinals-Braves winner in the World Series.
In the NLCS:
The Mike Soroka vs Jack Flaherty pitching matchup lived up to its billing with the Braves coming out on top and returning to Atlanta with 2 shots to advance to the World Series to play the Rays. Soroka wasn't as dominating as Game 1, but still effective as he scattered 8 hits over his 7 innings, and RBI singles from Ronald Acuna Jr. and Mookie Betts supplied the offense.
October 24:
In a game they'll be talking about for a long time, the Cardinals forced a Game 7 with an epic, 15-inning 4-3 win over Atlanta. The Cards looked like they had it won in regulation behind 7 strong innings from Noah Syndergaard, leading 3-1. But Atlanta tied it in the 8th off Seranthony Dominguez on solo HRs from Ronald Acuna Jr. and Freddie Freeman. On and on we went until Joey Gallo singled in Ian Happ in the top of the 15th to break the tie, and former Ray Brad Hand picked up the save. Game 7 should now be interesting with two very tired bullpens as Mike Clevinger faces Ross Stripling for all the marbles.
October 25:
After building a 9-3 lead through 6, the Braves had to withstand a furious Cardinals rally to hang on to win 12-8 and advance to the World Series to face the Rays. Ronald Acuna Jr. was the series MVP and went 3-4 today with a HR and 3 RBI. As the Braves won an MLB-high 104 games this season, they will host Games 1 and 2 of the World Series and have home-field advantage. It was another costly win for the Braves, though. Having already lost Ozzie Albies for the playoffs, they'll now be without Freddie Freeman for the World Series as he tore his quad.