The Tampa Bay Rays are showing why they earned the AL East crown, warding off the New York Yankees and earning a bye into the ALDS as a result. The owner of guaranteed homefield advantage through the ALCS, the Rays have taken care of business at Tropicana Field, taking a 2-0 lead in the ALDS courtesy of a 5-2 victory over the Yankees in Game 2 on Monday.

The Yankees may have the big names as they thrive off of the glitz and glamour that comes with playing in the Big Apple. But the Rays, operating on a shoestring budget that ranks 28th in player payroll in 2026, does not care about coming up against MLB's biggest spenders. All they care about is getting the job done.

For Rays star Junior Caminero, he knows that all they need is to win one more game to advance to the next round as they come one step closer to their dream of winning a World Series title.

Junior Caminero: 1 more 👀 pic.twitter.com/tr3Y4nWg1m

— MLB (@MLB) October 6, 2026

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Of course, even if the Rays end up winning one more contes against the Yankees to punch their ticket to the next round, the job is far from over. They will need to win four games in the ALCS and four games in the World Series before they reach the MLB mountaintop.

Caminero is doing his part for the Rays in this year's playoffs. He may have gone hitless in Game 1, going 0-2 from the plate, but he did draw two walks. He bounced back on Monday, scoring two hits in four at-bats while crossing the plate once.

The Rays will be deploying Nick Martinez on the mound to start Game 3 of the ALDS, which will be on Wednesday. Martinez started three games against the Yankees during the regular season, posting a clean 2.16 ERA in 16.2 innings of work while striking out 12 batters.