Drew Rasmussen allowed one run over seven innings for his second postseason win, helping the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 on Sunday night to take a 3-2 lead in the AL Championship Series.
Tampa Bay scored single runs in each of the first three innings, the first two off Parker Messick and the third against Tim Herrin. Rasmussen, 31, shut down the Guardians' offense after allowing two runs over six innings in the opener. After Chase De Lauter's two-out single in the first, the right-hander retired nine straight batters and allowed only one other baserunner through the sixth. Rasmussen gave up four hits, walked one and struck out six.
Cam Booser and Tyler Wells worked the eighth, with Wells striking out José Ramírez to strand a runner. Bryan Baker came in for the ninth and converted his 35th straight save chance, his fifth of this postseason. Jo Adell was on second base when Travis Bazzana hit a game-ending groundout.
Steven Kwan had two of Cleveland's five hits and made two fine defensive plays: He threw out Taylor Walls trying to score from second base on Jonathan Aranda's fourth-inning single to left and made a leaping catch at the center-field wall on Victor Mesa Jr.'s eighth-inning drive, saving a run.
Source: ESPN MLB · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing