ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Arguably this season's best summer acquisition, Tampa Bay Rays starter Freddy Peralta fired one fastball after another past the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night and pitched his team to a 3-1 victory in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series.
Seventy-two percent of Peralta's pitches were fastballs, the most in a game for him since 2019, while averaging a career-high 96.9 mph on the pitch. He also threw the hardest fastball of his career, clocking in at 99.4 mph.
The Guardians had no chance.
Peralta threw six scoreless innings, giving up four hits and two walks while striking out six. The Rays evened the best-of-seven series at one game apiece, thanks to three unearned runs scored in the fourth inning after a ball scooted under the glove of Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez. It was all that Peralta -- and his fastball -- needed.
"It's no secret that I trust in my fastball a lot and it's my best pitch," said Peralta, acquired by the Rays in a trade with the New York Mets in early August. "I was trusting the pitch and letting it go there. And it worked pretty well."
The Guardians went 3-for-17 against the pitch, hitting all singles.
Rays pitching coach Kyle Snyder was asked if the fastball usage was by design or just Peralta feeling the moment.
"He's 'Fastball Freddy' for a reason," Snyder said, noting that Peralta's average fastball velocity was 2.5 mph higher than his season average. "Some of it was in the moment and realizing it was a bit more power than art. Or all power, limited art."
Added manager Kevin Cash: "I felt like we tipped our hand a little bit. The announcers before the game and even our PA were calling him Fastball Freddy. That told everybody what was coming."
Even then, the Guardians couldn't hit it. In fact, they said they expected the higher velocity out of Peralta after watching him against the Yankees in the division series. Still, they couldn't square it up.
"He already has an elite fastball, and it felt like when he wanted to, he could spot it a ball above [the zone]," Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan said. "The location of it was just elite."
So was the speed of it. Peralta dug deep when he needed to most. Late in his outing, the Guardians had two on and two out in the fifth inning when Jo Adell stepped to the plate. Two 99 mph fastballs later, the Rays were out of the jam as Adell lined out to center field.
"His ability to throw that fastball from that angle, I don't know anyone has that heater," teammate Ian Seymour said of the sequence. "Getting to watch him pick guys apart was really incredible."
Peralta's transformation from a struggling Mets pitcher to start the year to a dominant Rays starter in the postseason has been nothing short of astounding. In New York, he compiled a 4.99 ERA before the trade. Since it, he has looked like his old self -- the one who dominated for years in Milwaukee.
"Whatever tweak they worked on is paying off big time," closer Bryan Baker said. "The fastball was even livelier in this scenario."
Snyder said Peralta found his game again for a combination of reasons. Some of it was strategic and mechanical, including having him work from the stretch and the arm side of the rubber. Some of it had to do with training -- the Rays strapped a 3D belt on him, which had him moving with "controlled violence." That led to the better fastball.
"He's moving faster, and that's why his fastball velocity is up," Snyder said. "A lot of it can snowball in the right direction."
Just as it can in the wrong direction, which is what happened in New York. Peralta said he still feels bad about his time there.
"It was very hard for me ... because I always had success in my whole career, and it was the first time that I was struggling like that," Peralta said. "It was a little disappointment for me. I didn't feel good about it. But when I got traded here, I just felt different. For some reason I got here, and I felt like myself again."
The Rays have been the beneficiaries of Peralta's return to form. Including Tuesday's performance, he has a 0.81 ERA over his past eight starts (regular season and playoffs), the best mark in MLB over that span. It has given the Rays the boost they needed in the rotation. Cleveland had several key summer acquisitions as well, but none has been as good as Fastball Freddy.
Asked why he thinks he produced career highs in velocity in his most important start of the year, Peralta said it was "the adrenaline."
"Also, I define myself as a competitor," he said. "And I like these kinds of games."