MLB playoffs: Takeaways from ALCS Game 3, lineups for NLCS Game 4

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          Guardians hold off Rays to take 2-1 lead in ALCS (1:01)

          • ESPN
          Oct 15, 2026, 03:50 PM ET

          On Day 5 of the League Championship Series, one team broke a series tie ... will another advance to the Fall Classic?

          After splitting the first two games in Tampa Bay, the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays faced off at Progressive Field in the day's first game. Thanks to Petey Halpin -- and his epic bat flip -- Cleveland prevailed, taking a 2-1 ALCS lead.

          Tonight, in what could be the finale of the NLCS, the Milwaukee Brewers will look to continue their dominant championship series run and sweep the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Can the Dodgers stave off elimination in Game 4 -- or will the Brewers advance to their first World Series since 1982?

          Stay tuned for in-game action and postgame analysis from Los Angeles and Cleveland.

          Key links: How final four teams were built | Playoff MVP tracker | Schedule

          Jump to: TB-CLE | MIL-LAD

          Cleveland Guardians 3, Tampa Bay Rays 2

          Cleveland leads series 2-1

          It was over when ... Petey Halpin cranked a 96-mph sinker down the middle from Griffin Jax in the fifth inning. The ball landed deep into the right-field seats, 385 feet away, for a go-ahead two-run home run. Halpin flipped his bat nearly that high, too, and Cleveland didn't look back.

          Game 3 star: Halpin, who began the season in Triple-A, had four big-league home runs -- all during the regular season -- in 213 career plate appearances before Thursday. The center fielder's first postseason homer was the difference Thursday.

          The stat that defined the game: In a vacuum, Gavin Williams' five innings Thursday do not seem like much. But context is important. The right-hander started Game 3 after throwing 210 pitches over 11⅔ innings in three of Cleveland's five ALDS games -- twice as a starter and once as a reliever. The Guardians weren't completely sure he would start Thursday until after he threw a bullpen Tuesday. He responded by holding the Rays to two runs -- on Chandler Simpson's two-run triple in the fourth inning -- with nine strikeouts and one walk. He threw just 70 pitches over his five innings. It was a gutsy performance on a day when the Guardians' bullpen could've been asked to shoulder a much heavier workload.

          What it means for the rest of the series: With rain in the forecast Friday, there's a chance this series won't play Game 4 until Saturday. If so, the clubs would play Game 5 on Sunday, which would take away their travel day before a potential Game 6 in Tampa Bay on Monday. For now, Game 4 is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Friday. -- Jorge Castillo

          Highlights from the Guardians' win:

          Halpin's homer, um, flips lead back to Guardians

          Simpson silences Cleveland crowd with two-run triple

          Gavin gettin' it done early

          Guardians score first on Lowe's double

          A series-defining day?

          Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers (8 p.m. ET)

          Starting pitchers: Shane Drohan vs. Tyler Glasnow

          Lineups

          Brewers
          TBD

          Dodgers
          TBD