Richie Palacios Returns to Bronx as Rays Chase ALCS Berth

Richie Palacios missed New York’s Knicks championship parade in June because the Rays’ schedule would not let him get home. Four months later, the Brooklyn-born infielder is headed back to the Bronx with a different kind of celebration in reach.

Tampa Bay is one win from the American League Championship Series after Monday’s 5-2 victory, and Palacios helped put the Yankees in that spot. With two outs in the fifth inning, he survived an eight-pitch battle and lined a two-run single, finishing a four-run rally that opened a 5-1 advantage.

For a player raised on Yankees games and Knicks basketball, the return to Yankee Stadium carries a little extra charge. Palacios attended Yankees games as a kid and made it to a few postseason dates in the Bronx while he was in the Minor Leagues. Now he arrives with a chance to help close out the club he grew up watching.

“Those are the environments you dream of playing,” Palacios said.

Palacios has found a familiar target

His history against New York has been productive. In 23 career games against the Yankees, postseason included, Palacios owns a .328 average, a .403 on-base percentage and a .484 slugging percentage. He also doubled against Gerrit Cole in Game 1 of this series.

Palacios said the Yankees connection does not change his approach so much as heighten the enjoyment. He grew up following the club, but once he was drafted, he wanted to perform against every opponent. Facing New York, he said, simply makes the opportunity more exciting.

Manager Kevin Cash knows what the matchup means to his second baseman. Cash said Palacios is deeply connected to New York, expects friends and supporters to show up in the Bronx, and sees him get energized whenever the schedule puts the Rays opposite the Yankees.

Cash also joked that Palacios may have been distracted during the Knicks’ run to their first NBA championship in 53 years because he was watching so much basketball. The real point was clear enough: the New York kid will have plenty of motivation in Game 3.

A second-base question answered from within

Palacios’ October contribution follows a turnaround that reshaped Tampa Bay’s infield plans. At the All-Star break, Rays second basemen had produced a .653 OPS, ranking 24th in the Majors. That need made Luis Arraez a logical name around the July Trade Deadline, especially for a lineup that already struck out less often than any other club.

Tampa Bay did not make that deal. Instead, Palacios started to deliver the production the Rays had been seeking.

Cash said the club had to lean harder on Palacios after Ben Williamson went on the injured list with a right hamstring strain on Aug. 7. Palacios, healthy after prior knee troubles, answered that call on both sides of the ball.

The manager praised Palacios’ range and ground coverage and pointed to the defensive pairing formed with shortstop Taylor Walls. Palacios spent the season primarily in the infield, though his ability to cover both infield and outfield remains part of his value.

“That at-bat and that hit was probably our biggest hit of the game,” Cash said of the fifth-inning single Monday. He added that Palacios has repeatedly come through when Tampa Bay has needed a lift.

The Rays need one more win to keep moving toward the first World Series title in franchise history. For Palacios, that chase resumes in the city where he learned to love the big stage.