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ALCS Game 5: Rays beat Guardians behind 7 strong innings from Drew Rasmussen, move to 1 win from World Series

Led by seven effective innings from Drew Rasmussen, the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 in Game 5 to claim a three-to-two lead in the American League Championship Series. Rasmussen surrendered only four hits and one walk while striking out six batters, overcoming a shaky seventh-inning start by inducing a crucial double play against Patrick Bailey.

Parker Messick struggled on the mound for Cleveland, yielding five hits and two runs across two innings as Tampa Bay capitalized early with consecutive leadoff scoring sequences. The victory puts the Rays just one win away from securing their third World Series appearance in franchise history.

Game 6 of the series is scheduled to take place at Tropicana Field with no intervening travel day due to a prior postponement. The winner of this matchup will ultimately advance to face the Milwaukee Brewers, who previously swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.

Both the Rays and the Brewers are currently seeking their first championship title in franchise history.

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Rasmussen adds to historic postseason as Rays go home with ALCS lead