Freddy Peralta Set to Pitch Rays Toward World Series in ALCS Game 6

Freddy Peralta will start Game 6 of the ALCS against Cleveland after recording a 0.79 ERA in his final six regular-season starts for the Rays.

Freddy Peralta is scheduled to start Game 6 of the American League Championship Series on Monday night at Tropicana Field. The 30-year-old right-hander joined the Tampa Bay Rays at the trade deadline following 22 starts with the New York Mets, where he posted a 4.99 ERA. Since the trade, Peralta allowed just three runs in 34 innings during his final six regular-season starts, earning American League Pitcher of the Month honors for September.

In the postseason, Peralta has delivered two starts and one relief appearance. During Game 2 of the ALDS against the New York Yankees, he allowed one run on three hits over 4 2/3 innings. He followed that by pitching six scoreless innings in a 3-1 Game 2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians. In that outing, Peralta recorded a career-high average fastball velocity of 96.9 mph and reached a personal best of 99.4 mph. He utilized his four-seam fastball for 71 of his 99 pitches, a career-high 72% usage rate.

Technical adjustments fueled Peralta's turnaround after he surrendered seven runs in his Rays debut at Coors Field. Pitching coach Kyle Snyder and bullpen coach Jorge Moncada moved Peralta to the third-base side of the rubber, widened his stance, and returned him to pitching exclusively out of the stretch. The Rays also increased his changeup usage to complement a heater that generates higher vertical break in St. Petersburg. Most recently, Peralta threw nine pitches in a scoreless relief appearance during Tampa Bay's 7-3 Game 4 win on Saturday.