ET, as the New York Yankees face the Tampa Bay Rays in an October showdown. Tampa Bay enters the series as the AL East champion and the American League’s top seed, while the Yankees arrive following a Wild Card Series sweep of the Boston Red Sox.
The series opener features a compelling pitching matchup between Tampa Bay right-hander Drew Rasmussen and New York’s Gerrit Cole. The Rays earned home-field advantage and valuable rest by capturing the division title, avoiding the physical toll of the Wild Card round. Meanwhile, the Yankees navigate a quick turnaround after eliminating Boston, leaning on a postseason-tested rotation and a high-powered lineup.
Cole Returns to the Postseason After Regular-Season Success Against Rays
The Yankees will send Gerrit Cole to the mound for Game 1, marking his postseason debut this season. Cole enters the matchup after nearly a week and a half off, representing his longest layoff between starts since returning from injury. His regular-season campaign in 2026 both began and ended against Tampa Bay, resulting in a pair of quality starts. Across three regular-season appearances against the AL East champions—his most against any single opponent—Cole averaged six innings pitched and posted a 2.50 ERA.
On the other side, Tampa Bay will counter with Drew Rasmussen to open the series and prove there is no rust following the team’s layoff. Acquired for the power-hitting Willy Adames as a swingman and backend starter, Rasmussen has turned into one of the more dominant starters in the AL, perfectly representing what the Rays are all about. Rasmussen finished the regular season with a 16-5 record, a 2.67 ERA, and 174 strikeouts. He also performed strongly against New York during the regular season, going 5-2 with a 1.81 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP across 11 appearances, which included 10 starts. Once carefully managed by the Rays—who let him reach or surpass 90 pitches just twice in 2025—Rasmussen crossed that threshold 17 times this season, including a career-high 114 pitches in a win over the Yankees.
Bullpen Dynamics and Lineup Matchups Shape the ALDS Opener
While the Yankees boast the second-lowest bullpen ERA in baseball, Tampa Bay’s relief corps finished the regular season ranked 14th. Furthermore, the Rays’ bullpen surrendered 95 home runs, marking the third-highest total in the major leagues.
Left-hander Cam Booser emerges as a critical X-factor out of the bullpen for the Rays in Game 1 and the series as a whole, given that the Yankees went just 1-for-10 against him in the regular season, with the lone hit being an Austin Wells home run. Left-hander Garrett Cleavinger was cleared for the ALDS roster, though he posted an 89 ERA+ across 41.1 innings during the regular season. Because Tampa Bay’s primary starters throw right-handed, Yankees manager Aaron Boone can deploy a left-heavy batting order featuring players like Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, and Luis García Jr. without hesitation in Game 1. Behind Rasmussen, Tampa Bay’s pitching options out of the bullpen and rotation also include Nick Martinez, Freddy Peralta, Griffin Jax, and Ian Seymour.
Offensive Core and Lineup Depth
Junior Caminero remains the centerpiece and offensive core of the Rays’ lineup as the young third baseman providing middle-of-the-order power. The Rays also lean heavily on Yandy Díaz, who supplies a disciplined on-base presence near the top of the order, and Jonathan Aranda, who adds a productive left-handed bat as an important run producer.
