After Friday’s Sprint, Guardians Win Marathon to Advance to ALDS

A day after playing the fastest postseason game since 1999, the Rays and Guardians combined for a game more than twice as long, lasting 15 innings and four hours and 57 minutes. Dominant pitching was the name of the game as both teams were held scoreless until the 15th inning — the longest scoreless postseason game in major league history. The decisive blow came when Oscar Gonzalez blasted a Corey Kluber cutter deep into left-center field for the walk-off win.

Between the two teams, 16 different pitchers combined for 39 strikeouts, eight walks, and 11 hits. They threw 432 pitches, 68% of which were strikes. Just 15 of the 58 balls in play were hard hit. No matter how you slice it, it was simply a masterclass in modern pitching by both teams:

The first five innings of Game 2 was eerily similar to Game 1. Triston McKenzie and Tyler Glasnow matched each other pitch for pitch, opening the game with a combined 12 strikeouts and just three hits. It was an extremely impressive performance from the Rays starter. After rehabbing from a Tommy John surgery that took place last August, Glasnow returned to the mound ahead of schedule, making two abbreviated starts in September. Helping his team in the playoffs was a motivator for him as he worked to get healthy, and he was fantastic when given the opportunity to help save Tampa Bay’s season. He worked efficiently, limiting hard contact, generating whiffs, and working into the fifth inning on a limited pitch count.

McKenzie was just as brilliant, his six inning effort the culmination of a true breakout season. He turned in a lackluster sophomore effort last year after a tantalizing 2020 debut. This season, he figured out how to command his entire repertoire. McKenzie’s zone rate jumped from 46.8% over his first two years in the big leagues to 51.4% in 2022. That helped him lower his walk rate to 5.9% while seeing just a slight dip in his strikeout rate. Those newfound skills were on display on Saturday afternoon, as he didn’t really face any trouble until the sixth inning. He allowed a pair of two-out baserunners on a walk and a single before squeaking out of the jam with a fly out to end the frame.

In the bottom of the sixth, Pete Fairbanks replaced Glasnow and walked the first two batters he faced before exiting the game with hand discomfort. Jason Adam came in and hit Amed Rosario with his first pitch of the game. With the bases loaded and José Ramírez at the plate, it was the first big scoring opportunity of the game for the Guardians. A journeyman reliever who had accumulated just 0.2 WAR across four big league seasons prior to this year, Adam was transformed into a deadly high-leverage reliever by the Rays development machine. His best weapon is a nasty changeup that really handcuffs left-handed batters; they were limited to just a .176 wOBA on the pitch this year. Ramírez chased three of those pitches out of the zone and was sent down on strikes before Adam got Josh Naylor to hit into a double play to escape the frame:

Bases loaded, season on the line, absolute filth. pic.twitter.com/gA9svk6iY9

— MLB (@MLB) October 8, 2022

After that, a cavalcade of relievers marched out of each bullpen, stifling any scoring opportunities. Just two baserunners reached through the final three innings of regulation play and both were erased before they could advance past first base. With the Manfred Man eliminated from postseason play, these two teams would be forced to manufacture a run the old fashioned way. Tampa Bay looked like the more dangerous team in extras; they advanced a runner into scoring position in the 10th, 12th, and 15th innings. On the other side, the Guardians had three baserunners reach after the ninth but none reached second.

With most of their high-leverage options used up, both teams turned to their long relievers. At that point, it felt like a breakthrough was bound to happen. And it almost did in the top of the 15th when the Rays put runners on the corners with just one out. Sam Hentges struck out Francisco Mejía and Jose Siri, both on nasty curveballs.

That brought up Oscar Gonzalez in the bottom half of the inning. Much has been made of the youthful Guardians roster, the youngest in baseball. Gonzalez was one of Cleveland’s key rookie contributors this year, one of six players on the roster who outperformed their pre-season ZiPS projection by more than a win. The 24-year-old made his major league debut in late May after Cleveland had struggled to find consistent production in the outfield. A breakout minor league season in 2021 had put him on the map; he slugged 31 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A that year and made some improvements in his contact rate. His bat-to-ball skills got even better in this year, albeit at the expense of some of his power. But that one standout tool was on display as he launched a Kluber cutter deep into left-center field on the second pitch of the bottom of the 15th inning:

OVER.#ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/HMtkBTvtdk

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) October 8, 2022

That was the only barreled ball the Guardians hit on Saturday, and at 107.5 mph, it was the hardest hit ball of the game. It flew 410 feet into the chilly afternoon sun and the fans in Cleveland flew into a frenzy as their team advanced. The Guardians will face the New York Yankees in the American League Division Series. Game 1 is Tuesday.