AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: GUARDIANS VS RAYS

October 13, 2026

Cam Booser

Tropicana Field

Tampa Bay Rays

Pregame 2 Press Conference

Q. With the lefties in this Cleveland lineup, what kind of difficulties and challenges do they present that you have to be really aware of?

CAM BOOSER: They've got good hitters 1 through 9 and on the bench, too. I think trusting our scouting, trusting our scouting department and how they want to attack the hitters and trying to take that into the at-bats.

And then at the end of the day, for me, it's just trusting what the catchers call and trusting what they've seen, and by the time I come into the game, how the starters have been attacking.

Q. First loss in the postseason. They were doing some things that you guys like to do, kind of similar identity. Now that you guys got punched, what's that response back to try to throw your blow here in Game 2?

CAM BOOSER: I mean, I think we try to continue to play our game. I think we've had success being who we are. I would think we're just going to continue to play our game.

Q. You're one of several pitchers who have come to Tampa and things kind of clicked, turned around for you. How much do you credit Kyle Snyder with that? And what has he done for you?

CAM BOOSER: All of it. Not only him, but their scouting department, their staff in Triple-A that helped me at the start of the year when I was down there. I think it starts from Snyds, and it goes down to the scouting department.

And then that translates into the unbelievable work that our catchers do and how prepared they are going into every game. I think that's been one of the biggest things for me this year, is the amount of confidence I have in the catchers and whatever they call.

Snyds has a reputation that extends before I got here. I think that's who he is and the identity of who they are here. They take guys they have a lot of confidence in, and they see what a lot of teams don't. I think they're able to get the most out of guys.

From day one that I was here, I felt that. I felt that they had confidence in me and they had a plan for me. So I tried to stick to that plan throughout the year. I think it's worked well for me.

I credit a lot of what's happened this year to him and to the scouting development and everybody that's been a part of it.

Q. Knowing your entire journey and where you've come from and now you're pitching as a valuable reliever on an ALCS team, I know it's hard to reflect on this moment, I get that, but if you could reflect on being on this stage right now, what does it mean to you?

CAM BOOSER: It's hard not to look back every once in a while, but I don't know how else to say it, but it's a dream come true and a blessing.

I never thought I'd be pitching in a playoff game. When I came out of retirement, I just wanted to play the game I loved maybe one more summer. I had hopes that it could come to this, but I never thought it was a real possibility.

But it is an absolute dream come true to not only be here, but to be able to do it with the group of guys that are here. It is such a special group. It's so fun to come to work every day.

I kind of lost that joy last year a little bit from the injuries, to the struggles, everything that kind of just cascaded, that -- I'm trying not to get emotional -- it's really sparked a joy for me to play this game again this year. I think all that starts from the organization and kind of how they set the tone and what they expect out of the guys.

And then it comes from the leadership within the clubhouse and how fun they make it to show up to work every day. And just kind of how consistent the vibe is here. It doesn't matter if we lose or win or whatever the situation is, it's just the same vibe every day. It's such a joy to come to work here.