With the benefit of the first-round bye, the Rays will have an opportunity to set their rotation exactly as they want it for the ALDS. A postseason rotation really only needs to have three true starting pitchers given the abundance of off days within and bookending a series.
The Rays will almost certainly begin their postseason with Drew Rasmussen taking the ball in game one followed by some combination of Freddy Peralta and Nick Martinez in games two and three. Griffin Jax and Ian Seymour make sense
as potential bulk options behind the rotation, or they could work in short relief. The rotation seems pretty clear, but the bullpen situation gets a little murky.
We’ll start with what we know: Bryan Baker will be closing games. Kevin Kelly has enjoyed a fantastic 2026 season and will see high-leverage innings. Cam Booser has been lights-out after beginning the season in Durham to refine his cutter shape, and he will also pitch in big spots. Manuel Rodriguez is with the team again after a brief IL stint and has not yet been activated at the time of writing this, but would certainly be on a postseason roster with his high-leverage experience.
So far that puts us at nine pitchers, and the Rays can carry 13. Shane McClanahan has been ruled out of the ALDS, but may return later. Tyler Wells and Garrett Cleavinger are dealing with similar injuries and could be on track for the ALDS. Assuming Wells and Cleavinger are good to go, that fills 11 of the 13 spots.
Here are the options to fill the remaining two bullpen spots:
- Cole Sulser
- Steven Matz
- Casey Legumina
- Ty Johnson
- Brody Hopkins
- Joe Boyle
- Jesse Scholtens
- Mason Englert
- Alex Cook
- Alexander Alberto
Sulser and Matz are a pair of experienced veteran arms who have quietly been lights-out lately. Since returning from the IL, Sulser has filled up the zone and pitched to a 1.29 ERA in seven innings, picking up a save. Matz sat out for a little over a week in August, and has since thrown 11 innings across eight appearances with a 1.59 ERA. Both offer solid and safe middle relief profiles given their strike throwing.
Legumina is another strike thrower who might not blow anyone away with his stuff, but his advanced feel for multiple shapes gives Cash and the Rays a reliable reliever in the middle innings. He has converted all seven of his hold opportunities with the Rays this season with several of his outings lasting multiple innings.
Hopkins and Johnson are a pair of rookies with significant upside. Hopkins combines elite stuff with emerging command and is simply unhittable when he’s in the zone and throwing strikes. He has maintained average strike and zone rates since converting to a relief role, but has yet to see any high-leverage opportunities in the majors. Johnson has already pitched in some key spots in the majors with underlying data that suggests he has been much better than his 4.05 ERA. In his limited time, Johnson has the highest whiff rate on the team and is a nightmare against right-handed hitters – he could be a real weapon in October.
If the Rays wanted to add a multi-inning arm, they could turn to any of Boyle, Scholtens, or Englert. Boyle has the highest ceiling of this group with plus-plus stuff across the board, but has struggled with command. However, Boyle has recently found a new breaking ball shape that has allowed him to maintain average command over his last month in Durham and could be a real weapon in October. A Rays home-field advantage would also give opposing teams limited time to train on Trajekt (a pitch replication system that simulates almost any pitcher’s release and shapes) against his new pitch. Scholtens and Englert represent safer, strike-throwing profiles with each having solid feel for their plus offspeed pitches. They’re fairly platoon-neutral and could help navigate a lineup one time through before handing the ball over to the leverage relievers.
Cook and Alberto appear to be on the outside looking in, but still represent significant upside. Cook has a strong track record of throwing strikes, and his cut-ride fastball comes in from a low release that makes 95-96mph look even faster. His arsenal is platoon-neutral, so he could be a potential high-leverage option some day. Cook has spent some time in the majors in low-leverage as a rookie. Alberto is a dark horse, and that could work in his favor as opposing teams would be unfamiliar with him. He’s not on the 40-man roster so there would need to be some maneuvering to get him on a playoff roster, but it’s possible. Alberto has one of the most unique releases in baseball thanks to his 6’8 frame and low three-quarter slot with plus extension. His upper 90s fastball has touched 100 in the past, and it’s cutter shape is incredibly difficult to square-up from both sides of the plate. He has been able to throw strikes at an average or better rate all season while still maintaining plus whiff rates. In addition to his ability to miss bats, Alberto has a career ground ball rate around 60% in the minor leagues and has only allowed seven home runs in over 230 innings. Unfortunately, five of those have come in Triple-A this season, but the run environment is relatively high-scoring and the ball really travels in those small International League parks.
There are lots of names in consideration for those final two bullpen spots in the ALDS, and I think the Rays would lean towards the safe, experienced arms in Sulser and Matz. They both have enough in the tank to get big outs in the postseason, and the clubhouse presence of the veterans on this roster is a key reason for the team’s success this year. However, if there are more injuries or Wells and Cleavinger aren’t ready in time, we could see some high-upside guys work their way into the postseason bullpen. Here’s how I expect we’ll see the Rays lineup their starting pitching:
- Rasmussen starts game one; he has flat out been their best starter this season.
- Peralta starts game two; he has been great with the Rays after making some adjustments, and his fastball-offspeed combo plays exceptionally well in high-drag environment in the Trop.
- Martinez starts game three; he could start game two, but I think the benefit of Peralta at the Trop along with Martinez’s mentality going into a hostile road environment makes him an ideal game three starter.
- Jax and Seymour work in tandem in game four; they’re the top two whiff leaders among Rays starters, and they offer a nice contrast in slots and styles that make it difficult to plan a lineup against. The Rays could also opt to go with Ras here on four-days rest.
- Rasmussen; should we see a fifth game, Rasmussen likely gets the ball, but it would also be an all-hands-on-deck approach. Everyone would likely be available to pitch – including Peralta and Martinez.
Here’s how I expect the bullpen to fill out:
- Baker
- Kelly
- Booser
- Wells
- Cleavinger
- Sulser
- Matz
- Johnson
If Wells or Cleavinger aren’t ready, I think Hopkins and Legumina would fill in those spots. Next up to fill any spots due to injury would be (in no particular order): Boyle, Scholtens, Englert, Cook, and Alberto. There’s a clear surplus of pitching talent and not enough roster spots. Some really talented players will inevitably get left off, but that’s a nice problem for the Rays to have as they look to make some noise in October.
