The Tampa Bay Rays punched their ticket to the World Series on Monday night with a win over the Cleveland Guardians.
They’ll now prepare to take on the Milwaukee Brewers. Both teams finished the regular season as the No. 1 seeds in their respective leagues, setting up a matchup between two of baseball’s best teams.
Both teams have plenty of talent, but one similarity they share is how dominant their bullpens have been. For the Rays, one of their go-to pitchers is quite familiar with the Boston Red Sox.
Cam Booser Thriving With Rays
Heading to the World Series with Tampa Bay is left-handed pitcher Cam Booser, who signed a minor league deal with the Rays back in January.
Booser made his MLB debut at age 31 in 2024 as a member of the Red Sox. In 2025, Boston traded him to the Chicago White Sox, where he eventually elected free agency, setting him on the path to Tampa Bay. The move has paid off for the journeyman pitcher.
Booser has been one of the anchors of the Rays’ bullpen. He pitched 1.2 scoreless innings on Monday night and hasn’t allowed an earned run since Sept. 2.
Across 42 appearances during the regular season, Booser posted a 1.98 ERA in 41 innings and recorded 45 strikeouts. In the playoffs, the 34-year-old has appeared in six games and owns a 0.00 ERA across 4.2 innings of relief.
The Rays added Cam Booser to the 40-man roster at the end of Spring Training, but he wasn’t in the Opening Day bullpen. He ended up in Triple-A Durham.
Now he’s going to the World Series.
@ECloskyWTSP caught up with the reliever after Game 6. https://t.co/jn2ecqnvSB
— David Schiele (@Deacon_Schiele) October 20, 2026
Booser’s Time With the Red Sox
Boston gave Booser an opportunity to make an MLB comeback that, for a while, seemed like it might never happen.
He retired from baseball in 2017 at age 25 after dealing with a series of injuries and went home to join the carpenters’ union in Seattle.
However, he continued giving pitching lessons to young players and realized he still had something left in the tank. He joined an independent league and eventually worked his way back into the Red Sox organization, earning a call-up in 2024.
During his time with Boston, Booser pitched in 43 games and posted a 2-3 record with a 3.38 ERA across 42.2 innings.
Ex-Red Sox Journeyman Pitcher Heading to World Series With Rays