Rays Beat the Guardians 7-3 to Level the ALCS at 2-2 With the Brewers Already Waiting in the World Series
A rainout pushed Game 4 to Saturday night, then Tampa Bay broke it open in the seventh and forced a Game 5 on Sunday with a World Series berth against Milwaukee at stake.
Sunday, October 18, 2026/2 min read
Cleveland had a chance to go up 3-1 and put one foot in the World Series. Instead the Tampa Bay Rays used a rainout, a bullpen game and one bad bounce in right field to beat the Guardians 7-3 on Saturday night and level the American League Championship Series at two games each.
The game was supposed to be played on Friday. It was postponed late that night by rain in Cleveland, ESPN reported, which wiped out an off day and moved Game 5 to Sunday at 5 p.m. Eastern.
How did the Rays win Game 4?
Rays starter Nick Martinez was the story early. He retired 11 straight batters into the fifth inning, per MLB.com, and allowed one run on two hits over 5⅓ innings, ESPN said. Junior Caminero's go-ahead double in the sixth made it 2-1 to Tampa Bay.
The seventh inning decided it. A ground ball from Jonathan Aranda went for a single, and a misplay by Guardians right fielder Chase DeLauter let it get past him, which allowed three runs to score in the inning. The Rays led 4-1 and the game was effectively over.
What did the Guardians do with their bullpen?
Cleveland used a bullpen game, with Shawn Armstrong opening, and went through seven pitchers. Foster Griffin gave them 44 pitches over 3⅔ innings in relief. The Guardians scored three runs on eight hits and three walks, but never closed the gap. Outfielder Steven Kwan left the game with a busted lip after a headfirst dive to first base.
Manager Stephen Vogt put it bluntly afterwards: "Now, it's a three-game series," according to MLB.com.
Who pitches Game 5?
Sunday's starters are Cleveland lefty Parker Messick, making his fourth postseason start, against Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen. ESPN noted that Rasmussen is fully rested, and that the winner of Game 5 in a series tied 2-2 goes on to win 67 percent of the time. First pitch is 5 p.m. Eastern on TBS, truTV, UniMas and HBO Max.
If the series goes the distance, Game 6 would be Monday and Game 7 Tuesday, both at Tropicana Field.
Who is waiting in the World Series?
The Milwaukee Brewers, who swept the Dodgers in the NLCS and whose run we followed through their Game 3 win at Dodger Stadium. World Series Game 1 is scheduled for 23 October in Milwaukee, per ESPN.
The Brewers now get days of rest while the American League finishes its fight. For Cleveland, the fix is simple to state and hard to do: win a home game they had mostly controlled until the seventh. For Tampa Bay, the series is level, and if it goes the distance the last two games are at home.
Published in The Outspoken Digest
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