Has Tampa Bay ever won a World Series? No. The Rays have never won one, but they moved one win closer to that first title with a 3-1 victory over the Guardians in Game 5 of the ALCS in Cleveland, taking a three games to two lead.
Drew Rasmussen carried the night for Tampa Bay, holding Cleveland to one run on four hits in seven innings, and Yandy Díaz backed him with three hits. After the win, Díaz did not hide the mood in the clubhouse. “We’re going to win tomorrow,” he said.
That is why the search is spiking now. One win in Game 6 would send the Rays to the World Series, where they would meet the Brewers if Milwaukee gets through its own side of the bracket. It would also set up something neither club has ever done before: win the title for the first time.
The clean path is still not complete, though. Tampa Bay has the chance to finish it, but the Brewers still have to get there before that matchup can exist, which leaves the Rays with the one thing they wanted most after Game 5 and the one thing they still have to earn: the clincher.
Freddy Peralta will take the mound for the Rays in Game 6, and that start now carries the whole series weight. If Tampa Bay closes it out, the club will have answered the question behind every search and every score update on the night: no, the Rays have never won a World Series, but they are one game from trying to change that.
