The Tampa area's two favorite teams square off in a highly anticipated showdown in the MLB playoffs. One of the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees will advance past the American League Division Series and lay claim to the title of favorite to represent the AL in the 2026 World Series.
The two AL East rivals share a lot more than a division. The Yankees play spring training games in Tampa, even lending their field to the Rays in 2025 after a hurricane left them homeless. Tropicana Field is back now, but in 2029, the Rays plan on moving into a $2.3 billion stadium right next door to Steinbrenner Field.
Familiarity breeds contempt, as they say, and the fans of both the local team and the traditional powerhouse are expected to show out in droves
for what promises to be a captivating five-game playoff series. The teams finished with the two best records in the American League, with Tampa clinching the division title and the No. 1 seed on the back end of a doubleheader in New York on the final week of the regular season. That left the Yankees needing to play a best-of-three wild-card series against their archrivals, the Boston Red Sox, easily dispatching them in a thumping two-game sweep by a combined score of 18-2.
Shop for Rays vs Yankees playoff tickets
Now the two meet for just the second time in the playoffs. The Rays prevailed in the 2020 ALDS, pushed to a winner-take-all Game 5, on their way to their second-ever World Series appearance. That was also the last year they've won a postseason series. New York is looking to return to the World Series after falling short of a 28th title in 2024 (coincidentally, both teams lost their last venture in the Fall Classic to the juggernaut Los Angeles Dodgers).
This series could feature two of the game's premier sluggers. Tampa Bay's Junior Caminero will definitely be there; his 44 home runs tied for fourth in all of baseball. There are still questions around the health of Aaron Judge, who missed three months with a fractured rib and then missed the wild-card series with a calf strain. If he's in the lineup, look out: The Yankees still finished second with 223 dingers in the regular season with limited output from the three-time MVP.
Tampa Bay Rays tickets vs Yankees
As of 11 a.m. Oct. 1, tickets for Game 1 of the ALDS between the Rays and Yankees were available starting at $137 on StubHub. Seats at field level were available starting at $242.
Games 1 and 2 will be at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, as well as the deciding Game 5 if the series goes that far. You can shop for tickets for every MLB playoff game on StubHub.
Buy Tampa Bay Rays playoff tickets on StubHub
Yankees vs Rays schedule
All times Eastern.
- Game 1: 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 3 | Tropicana Field (St. Petersburg, FL) | TBS
- Game 2: 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 5 | Tropicana Field (St. Petersburg, FL) | TBS
- Game 3: TBD Wednesday, Oct. 7 | Yankee Stadium (Bronx, NY) | TBS
- Game 4*: TBD Thursday, Oct. 8 | Yankee Stadium (Bronx, NY) | TBS
- Game 5*: TBD Saturday, Oct. 10 | Tropicana Field (St. Petersburg, FL) | TBS
*- if necessary
Rays vs Yankees TV schedule, streaming info
The ALDS between the Rays and Yankees will be broadcast on TBS. Streaming options include Sling, which carries TBS and offers a one-day pass for its Orange plan starting at $4.99.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Looking for Yankees-Rays tickets? Here's the cost to see MLB playoffs
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