Game 4 of the American League Championship Series was postponed because of rain on Friday night in Cleveland, forcing the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cleveland Guardians to wait another day to continue their battle for a place in the World Series.
A wet night at Progressive Field
The teams were set to face off at Progressive Field with an 8 p.m. ET first pitch, but rain began falling before the game and never let up. About an hour before the scheduled start, Major League Baseball announced a rain delay, and grounds crews attempted to clear standing water from the field before the tarp went back on. Roughly an hour after first pitch was supposed to happen, the league pushed the game back entirely. It is the first ALCS postponement since 2019, when the New York Yankees hosted the Houston Astros. Game 4 will now be played on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with Game 5 set for Sunday at 5 p.m. ET in Cleveland; Games 6 and 7, if needed, will be played in St. Petersburg on Monday and Tuesday.
Guardians hold the advantage
Cleveland leads the best-of-seven series 2-1. The Guardians took Game 1 by 7-3, the Rays answered with a 3-1 win in Game 2, and Cleveland edged Game 3 by 3-2 on the back of Petey Halpin's two-run homer. Both teams said they would keep their originally announced pitchers for the rescheduled game: Nick Martinez for Tampa Bay and Shawn Armstrong as the opener for Cleveland. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said the team was used to Cleveland weather, while Rays manager Kevin Cash said he was "not frustrated at all" with the decision.
A World Series berth on the line
The winner of the series will face the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series, which opens on October 23 in Milwaukee. The Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 in the National League Championship Series to reach the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982. Cleveland is chasing its first World Series appearance since 2016, while Tampa Bay has not been there since 2020 — and the compressed schedule, with no further off days if the series goes the distance, makes bullpen management a decisive factor.
Sources:
- USA Today (AP): What is ALCS schedule after Game 4 postponed? New info for rest of Guardians-Rays series
- theScore: Game 4 of ALCS postponed because of weather
A wet night at Progressive Field
The teams were set to face off at Progressive Field with an 8 p.m. ET first pitch, but rain began falling before the game and never let up. About an hour before the scheduled start, Major League Baseball announced a rain delay, and grounds crews attempted to clear standing water from the field before the tarp went back on. Roughly an hour after first pitch was supposed to happen, the league pushed the game back entirely. It is the first ALCS postponement since 2019, when the New York Yankees hosted the Houston Astros. Game 4 will now be played on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with Game 5 set for Sunday at 5 p.m. ET in Cleveland; Games 6 and 7, if needed, will be played in St. Petersburg on Monday and Tuesday.
Guardians hold the advantage
Cleveland leads the best-of-seven series 2-1. The Guardians took Game 1 by 7-3, the Rays answered with a 3-1 win in Game 2, and Cleveland edged Game 3 by 3-2 on the back of Petey Halpin's two-run homer. Both teams said they would keep their originally announced pitchers for the rescheduled game: Nick Martinez for Tampa Bay and Shawn Armstrong as the opener for Cleveland. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said the team was used to Cleveland weather, while Rays manager Kevin Cash said he was "not frustrated at all" with the decision.
A World Series berth on the line
The winner of the series will face the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series, which opens on October 23 in Milwaukee. The Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 in the National League Championship Series to reach the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982. Cleveland is chasing its first World Series appearance since 2016, while Tampa Bay has not been there since 2020 — and the compressed schedule, with no further off days if the series goes the distance, makes bullpen management a decisive factor.
Sources:
- USA Today (AP): What is ALCS schedule after Game 4 postponed? New info for rest of Guardians-Rays series
- theScore: Game 4 of ALCS postponed because of weather