The Cleveland Guardians lead the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 in the American League Championship Series. Game 4 was set for Friday in Cleveland, but rain was in the forecast, and the MLB schedule now lists it for Saturday night at 8:08 p.m. ET. Game 5 follows Sunday evening.
The winner of the best-of-seven series moves on to face the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series, which opens Friday, Oct. 23, in Milwaukee.
How the series has gone
- Game 1 (Monday): Cleveland won 7-3.
- Game 2 (Tuesday): Tampa Bay won 3-1. Freddy Peralta threw six innings of four-hit ball. Liam Hicks lined a two-run single after Cleveland’s José Ramírez made a fielding error.
- Game 3 (Thursday): Cleveland won 3-2 to take the lead, News 5 Cleveland reported.
The turning point in Game 3
Petey Halpin hit a go-ahead, two-run homer for Cleveland. Starter Gavin Williams struck out nine over five innings and allowed two runs. Ramírez had two hits, and Nathaniel Lowe drove in a run.
After Williams left, the bullpen took over. Daniel Espino, Erik Sabrowski, Hunter Gaddis and Cade Smith allowed only one baserunner over the final four innings. Cleveland retired 16 of the last 17 Rays batters. Smith stranded a runner at third in the eighth by striking out Yandy Díaz, then pitched a perfect ninth for a four-out save.
Tampa Bay’s bats went quiet. Rays hitters struck out 13 times in Game 3 after combining for 14 strikeouts in the first two games.
What the history says
- Teams that go up 2-1 in a league championship series reach the World Series 70.3% of the time.
- Cleveland has led an ALCS 2-1 only three times before, in 1997, 1998 and 2007.
- The Rays are facing their first 2-1 deficit in an ALCS in franchise history.
- Cleveland has won five of its last six playoff games, dating back to the Division Series, when it trailed the Chicago White Sox 2-0.
What is next
The MLB schedule lists the remaining games this way:
- Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 17, 8:08 p.m. ET in Cleveland.
- Game 5: Sunday, Oct. 18, 5 p.m. ET in Cleveland.
- Games 6 and 7, if needed: Tuesday and Wednesday in Tampa Bay.
Game times can change with the weather, so check MLB.com for updates.
