Guardians Erase Early Deficit to Beat Rays in ALCS Opener

The Cleveland Guardians overcame an early deficit to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 7-3 in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series on Monday night at Tropicana Field, extending their postseason winning streak to four games and seizing a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Tampa Bay jumped ahead in the first inning on an RBI single from Junior Caminero, part of an early rally that put the Rays up 2-0 before Cleveland's lineup got untracked. Chase DeLauter cut into the deficit with an opposite-field solo home run, and catcher Patrick Bailey delivered a go-ahead blow in the seventh inning — a 436-foot shot to right-center off Rays starter Drew Rasmussen that was the longest home run of Bailey's major-league career, according to an official recap of the game published by MLB.com. Tampa Bay's Cedric Mullins answered with a home run of his own, but Cleveland pulled away late. Nathaniel Lowe delivered a go-ahead hit in the eighth inning, and the Guardians tacked on three more runs in the ninth, including a two-run double from Jo Adell, to put the game out of reach.

Jose Ramirez, Cleveland's longtime third baseman, finished with three hits and continued a torrid postseason stretch. He went 5-for-12 with two home runs and seven RBIs across the final three games of the American League Division Series against the Chicago White Sox, a series the Guardians won after trailing two games to none, according to MLB.com's account of his baserunning and hitting during the comeback. Reliever Foster Griffin, pressed into a starting role after Cleveland's two top starters were unavailable following the grueling five-game Division Series, allowed two runs over four innings, and the bullpen quartet of Daniel Espino, Joey Cantillo, Hunter Gaddis and Erik Sabrowski combined to shut the door before closer Cade Smith finished the ninth, according to a pitching breakdown from the team's official site.

The result reversed the outcome of the regular-season series between the two clubs, in which Tampa Bay won five of six meetings and outscored Cleveland 20-8, according to a pre-series matchup analysis published ahead of Game 1. The Rays arrived at the series having swept the New York Yankees in the Division Series behind a dominant performance from Rasmussen, who allowed just one hit over eight scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts in that series opener, while the Guardians needed all five games, and a come-from-behind effort, to eliminate the White Sox.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt credited his team's composure after falling behind early, while Rays manager Kevin Cash said the club would regroup ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday night, according to a game story from Yahoo Sports. Cleveland's bullpen depth and timely power have been recurring themes of its playoff run, with four different players hitting home runs across the first two rounds of the postseason.

The series continues Tuesday at Tropicana Field, with Freddy Peralta expected to start for Tampa Bay against a Cleveland staff still managing workload after a taxing Division Series. The winner advances to the World Series later this month.