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The Tampa Bay Rays had enough pitching to keep ALCS Game 3 within reach. They lacked the execution to finish it.
Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field left the Rays trailing the series 2-1. Griffin Jax surrendered the decisive home run, while Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda combined for eight hitless at-bats.
Those failures deserve different weight. Jax lost the lead, but the two lineup anchors helped make that mistake impossible to overcome.
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Griffin Jax failed to protect Tampa Bay’s lead
Chandler Simpson’s two-run triple gave the Rays a 2-1 advantage in the fourth. Jax surrendered it in the fifth.
Three runs allowed hardly represents a collapse. Still, Jax owns the game’s clearest individual mistake. Protecting that narrow lead was his responsibility, and Petey Halpin’s swing erased the reward for Simpson’s breakthrough.
Junior Caminero never gave the Rays a chance to capitalize
Caminero went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts, leaving Tampa Bay’s biggest power threat without a ball in play.
The AL MVP candidate’s struggles went beyond finishing hitless. By striking out in every plate appearance, he spoiled any chance to advance a runner or place pressure on the Guardians defense.
His fourth-inning strikeout followed Yandy Diaz’s leadoff double, putting another obstacle between the Rays and a potential rally. Simpson delivered, but Caminero contributed nothing to that scoring opportunity.
After a regular season featuring 42 home runs and 101 RBIs, the expectations were justified. Tampa Bay needed its star to influence a one-run game. Instead, every plate appearance ended the same way.
Jonathan Aranda left another hole near the top
Aranda finished 0-for-4 as well, with two strikeouts, compounding Caminero’s struggles from the second spot in the order.
His fourth-inning strikeout came with Diaz on second. Together, Aranda and Caminero squandered consecutive opportunities to advance or score the leadoff runner before Simpson rescued the inning.
The Guardians deserve credit for limiting the Rays to three hits and recording 13 strikeouts. Against pitching that dominant, Tampa Bay could ill afford empty at-bats from its core hitters.
Jax surrendered the lead, while Aranda and Caminero offered no answer. The No. 1-seeded Rays need their lineup anchors to respond in Game 4. Another quiet night from the core that powered the club to an AL-best 98 wins could leave the Rays one loss from elimination.
Related: Rays’ Junior Caminero makes honest admission after striking out 4 times in Game 3
Related: Rays’ Kevin Cash gets brutally honest on previous Guardians tenure