Rays vs. Guardians: Cleveland claims Game 3 victory in ALCS
Taylor Walls #6 of the Tampa Bay Rays tags out José Ramírez #11 of the Cleveland Guardians at second base during a stolen base attempt in the first inning in game three of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field on October 15, 20
CLEVELAND - The Cleveland Guardians edged out the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 in Game 3 on Thursday at Progressive Field to capture a 2-1 lead in the American League Championship Series.
Rays & Guardians split first two games
The backstory:
Cleveland took Game 1 with a 7-3 victory Monday, overcoming Tampa Bay to grab the early series lead.
The Rays responded Tuesday with a 3-1 win behind a strong performance from starting pitcher Freddy Peralta, who threw six scoreless innings, allowed four hits and struck out six.
Tampa Bay broke through with three runs in the fourth inning after a fielding error by Cleveland third baseman José Ramírez. On the very next pitch, Liam Hicks delivered a clutch two-run single to help give the Rays the lead, and the bullpen held Cleveland to one run.
Closer Bryan Baker showed his emotions after recording the save and preserving the win to even the series.
Baker made history Tuesday night, becoming the first player to allow zero hits and earn the save in four straight playoff games.
Why Game 3 matters for Tampa Bay
Why you should care:
The best-of-seven ALCS shifted to Cleveland for Games 3, 4 and 5. The Guardians will take a 2-1 series lead and put itself in position to move closer to the American League pennant.
For the Rays, the challenge was carrying their Game 2 momentum into a road environment. Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash acknowledged the atmosphere at Progressive Field, where Cleveland's fans helped energize the Guardians during their American League Division Series comeback against the Chicago White Sox.
The Guardians, meanwhile, will look to continue to take advantage of home-field support after splitting the opening two games in St. Petersburg.
The series winner will advance to the World Series, which is scheduled to begin Oct. 23.
What's next:
Game 4 will be played between the Rays and the Guardians on Friday in Cleveland. That game is expected to start at 5 p.m.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered during the American League Championship Series games and includes previous FOX 13 News reports.