Surprised Rays SP Freddy Peralta reacts to Steve Cohen’s presence at ALCS Game 2

Freddy Peralta must be thanking his lucky stars that the Tampa Bay Rays managed to acquire him at the trade deadline. After all, not only was he struggling personally to the tune of a 4.99 ERA with the New York Mets, the Mets were also in the middle of a disastrous 2026 campaign. Instead of watching the postseason from the couch, Peralta now has the opportunity to play a huge role in the Rays' quest to win the franchise's first World Series title.

Peralta proceeded to show out on Tuesday as he pitched six shutout innings to power the Rays to a 3-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians to even up the ALCS at 1-1. He has not allowed more than one earned run in each of his past eight starts, and he seems to be rediscovering his best self, as he even reached 99.4 mph on his fastball in Game 2 of the ALCS.

One surprise fan in attendance in Tropicana Field on Tuesday was Mets owner Steve Cohen , Peralta's former employer. At the very least, the 30-year-old cleared up that he and Cohen have a good working relationship .

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"Oh, I had no idea. You know, I don't even know what to say because I don't know if he came just to watch the game or maybe me too. What I can say is that we have a good relationship. When he traded for me, he texted me, we spoke," Peralta said in his postgame presser, via Foul Territory on X.

"Also, when we were in Spring Training, we had a really good communication. He spoke with me when I got traded to the Rays. I think that he's awesome and I'm happy that he was here, not watching me, but watching the Rays."

It must have been bittersweet for Cohen to see Peralta be back to being at his best for the Rays after struggling with the Mets. Nonetheless, the Mets had to do what they had to do, and the Rays have to be thankful that they now have the 30-year-old's services for this postseason run.