Rates & Barrels: A show about Baseball

The 2026 ALCS is set! The Cleveland Guardians completed an incredible comeback against the Chicago White Sox, erasing a 2-0 ALDS deficit to advance to the American League Championship Series against the Tampa Bay Rays. But after surviving Chicago, does Cleveland have enough pitching left to take down Tampa Bay?

Derek VanRiper and Eno Sarris deliver their complete **Guardians vs. Rays ALCS preview**, breaking down projected starting pitching matchups, bullpen depth, lineup advantages, platoon strategies, X-factors and predictions for the best-of-seven series.

José Ramírez delivered one of the most remarkable home runs in postseason history, Gavin Williams dominated Game 5, and Cade Smith has been nearly unhittable. Now the Guardians face a Rays team that won five of their six regular-season meetings and has a very different approach to managing its pitching staff.

Can Cleveland navigate a potential bullpen game against Drew Rasmussen? How will Parker Messick and Gavin Williams match up against Tampa Bay's starters? And will Junior Caminero, Yandy Díaz or an unexpected Rays role player become the difference-maker?

Who wins the ALCS — Guardians or Rays? And how many games will it take? Drop your predictions in the comments!**

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📧 Email: ratesandbarrels@gmail.com
🎧 Rates & Barrels — The Athletic's Baseball Podcast

Hosts: Derek VanRiper & Eno Sarris
Executive Producer & Editor: McEnroe Francis

#ALCS #Guardians #Rays #MLBPlayoffs #RatesAndBarrels

00:00 – Guardians Complete an Incredible ALDS Comeback
01:43 – Cleveland's Pitching Exposes Chicago's Biggest Weakness
06:56 – José Ramírez's Unbelievable Game 5 Home Run
11:45 – Guardians vs. Rays: Projected ALCS Pitching Matchups
14:24 – Comparing the Starting Rotations and Bullpens
16:22 – How Cleveland Can Attack Tampa Bay's Platoons
22:33 – Rays Dominate the Regular-Season Matchups
25:44 – Cade Smith and the Guardians' Bullpen Challenge
28:23 – Which Guardians Hitters Must Step Up?
33:14 – Breaking Down the Game 1 and Game 2 Matchups
39:36 – Tampa Bay's Pitching Depth and Defensive Advantage
42:16 – Why the ALCS Schedule Could Hurt Cleveland
44:40 – ALCS Predictions: Rays in Six?
49:24 – The Junior Caminero Trade Comes Back to Haunt Cleveland
51:29 – ALCS X-Factors and Unexpected Difference-Makers
52:18 – Could Tampa Bay's Outfield Defense Be Exposed?
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Tim Kurkjian and Eduardo Pérez return to Starkville! This week, Jayson and Doug welcome the baseball insiders to break down the wildest moments of the postseason, from Eduardo’s Dodgers and Yankees fumble to the best stories of October, including Bryan Baker’s buddies and the Tampa Bay Rays’ growth. They discuss the craziest things they’ve seen on the field, questionable umpire predictions, the Yankees’ wall controversy, and the lawyer explanations that followed. Plus, they dive into the baseball insanity surrounding the Guardians and White Sox, the challenges of retractable roofs in Tampa and Milwaukee, and Eduardo’s memorable encounter with a D-ring. And in Strange But True, a fair or foul call involving Milwaukee’s roof takes center stage. Finally, Tim and Eduardo share stories from their travels around baseball, including what makes Tim Kurkjian such a legendary storyteller.

Rundown:
00:33 In The Booth
05:59 Up Next
06:03 Tim and Eduardo Visit Starkville!
13:48 Best Thing This Postseason
23:36 Craziest Things Seen
30:21 Guardians and White Sox
42:25 Let’s Talk About Roofs
47:41 Elite Shortstop Explanation
51:49 Top Tales About Traveling With Tim and Eduardo
1:00:00 Up Next
1:00:35 Strange But True
01:12:26 Wrap Up

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Hosts: Jayson Stark & Doug Glanville
With: Tony Gwynn Jr. & Mark Grant
Producer: Matthew Chilelli
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The Dodgers have the star power, the Cy Young-caliber rotation and seemingly endless pitching depth. But are the Brewers actually the perfect team to beat them?

Eno Sarris and Trevor May preview the Dodgers-Brewers NLCS, breaking down a loaded Los Angeles rotation featuring Tarik Skubal, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow and how Milwaukee's contact-heavy, low-chase offense might attack it.

Can the Brewers grind down L.A.'s starters and reach the vulnerable portions of the bullpen? Is Jacob Misiorowski the great equalizer? How important will Aaron Ashby, Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill be in a seven-game series? And could simply getting one blowout win — and saving the high-leverage arms for another night — ultimately swing the NLCS?

Plus, Eno and Trevor reveal their X-factors and make their picks to reach the World Series.

Who wins the NLCS: Dodgers or Brewers?

Like, Subscribe and drop us a comment!

e-mail: ratesandbarrels@gmail.com
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00:00 — Dodgers vs. Brewers NLCS Preview
03:47 — Can Milwaukee Crack the Dodgers' Rotation?
09:03 — Breaking Down the Dodgers' Bullpen
11:47 — Is Edwin Díaz Back?
16:25 — What's Wrong With the Dodgers' Offense?
19:25 — Dodgers vs. Brewers Offense
23:03 — Jacob Misiorowski & the Brewers' Rotation
25:34 — Where the Dodgers Have the Pitching Edge
26:55 — The Key to the Series
28:06 — Brewers Bullpen & Aaron Ashby
31:33 — Death By A Thousand Cuts
32:20 — How Milwaukee Can Attack Dodgers Pitching
36:35 — Can the Brewers Grind Down Skubal?
38:41 — How Milwaukee Can Slow Down an Ace
41:20 — The Left-Handed Matchup Game
43:41 — NLCS X-Factors
48:54 — Trevor & Eno Make Their Picks
51:15 — Why Is Postseason Offense Disappearing?
58:13 — Has Baseball Come Full Circle?

Hosts: Eno Sarris & Trevor May
Executive Producer & Editor: McEnroe Francis
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The Championship Series field is starting to take shape.

The Dodgers, Brewers and Rays are moving on after a massive day of postseason baseball, while the Guardians kept their season alive and forced another game against the White Sox.

DVR and Eno recap all four games, breaking down the biggest performances, pitching decisions and moments that decided each matchup. They look at how Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Tampa Bay punched their tickets to the next round, what Cleveland did to extend its series with Chicago, and what it all means as the MLB postseason moves one step closer to the ALCS and NLCS.

Plus, who earned a 🥂 **Toast of the Game** after a full day of October baseball?
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The Division Series are heating up, and Rates & Barrels is LIVE to break down everything from a huge night of October baseball.

DVR and Eno Sarris recap Tuesday’s NLDS action, including Brewers-Padres Game 3 and Braves-Dodgers Game 3, as both National League series take another major step toward determining who will reach the NLCS.

Then, the guys turn their attention to the American League after the Rays and White Sox took control of their respective series. The Yankees and Guardians now head into Wednesday facing potential elimination games with their seasons on the line.

What went wrong for New York and Cleveland? Can either team fight its way back into the series? And what have Tampa Bay and Chicago done to put themselves one win away from the ALCS?

Plus, we break down the biggest performances, managerial decisions, pitching matchups and turning points from another packed day of postseason baseball.
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