Rays Make Right Call Sticking With Nick Martinez After ALCS Game 4 Rainout

The Tampa Bay Rays were given an unexpected day off Friday after Game 4 of the American League Championship Series against the Cleveland Guardians was postponed due to rain.

And with Tampa Bay trailing 2-1 in the series, Kevin Cash had an interesting decision to make.

Does he stick with Nick Martinez, who was originally scheduled to start Friday, or move Drew Rasmussen up in the rotation?

Cash decided to stick with Martinez.

"Martinez will start tomorrow. And then we'll just go day-to-day from there."

And I think that's absolutely the right decision.

Especially when you consider what Martinez has accomplished throughout the season.

The 36-year-old right-hander has been one of Tampa Bay's most dependable pitchers, and his numbers against Cleveland provide plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

Martinez faced the Guardians twice during the regular season, throwing 13 scoreless innings while allowing just seven hits.

That includes seven shutout innings at Progressive Field in April.

And his success wasn't limited to Cleveland.

Martinez finished the regular season with a 2.38 ERA on the road, the fourth-best mark in the American League.

The Rays also went 23-9 in games he started.

Those numbers certainly deserve some recognition.

And considering Tampa Bay's offensive struggles throughout the postseason, having somebody who can consistently keep games close becomes even more important.

But there's another reason I like this decision.

By sticking with Martinez, Tampa Bay can keep Rasmussen lined up for Game 5 on Sunday, with Freddy Peralta potentially available for Game 6 at Tropicana Field.

And the extra rest could benefit Rasmussen.

According to MLB.com, Rasmussen made 23 of his 30 regular-season starts with at least five days of rest. He'll now have five days between starts heading into Sunday.

That's important considering the Rays could play four consecutive games if the series goes the distance.

Now, I understand why some fans might question Cash's decision.

After all, he elected to start Griffin Jax in Game 3 instead of Martinez, and that gamble didn't work out.

Jax allowed all three Cleveland runs in Tampa Bay's 3-2 loss.

However, changing the rotation again doesn't necessarily solve anything.

Martinez has earned this opportunity.

And he's already shown his willingness to do whatever Tampa Bay needs, keeping himself available out of the bullpen earlier in the series despite being scheduled to start Game 4.

That's the type of veteran leadership this team needs right now.

Of course, none of this matters if Tampa Bay's offense continues to struggle.

But with the season potentially hanging in the balance, I think Cash is making the right decision by trusting Martinez.

The Rays need to win Saturday.

And keeping Martinez, Rasmussen, and Peralta lined up gives Tampa Bay a legitimate opportunity to do more than just even the series.