CLEVELAND — The Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays are set to meet Oct. 16 for Game 4 of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field with Cleveland having a chance to take command of the series.
The Guardians enter Game 4 with a 2-1 series lead after their Game 3 win, fueled by Petey Halpin's go-ahead home run in the fifth inning and another playoff save by closer Cade Smith.
As Game 4 of the best-of-seven ALCS approaches, here are predictions from Beacon Journal sports writers Ryan Lewis and Nate Ulrich.
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Guardians-Rays ALCS Game 4 predictions
Lewis: The Guardians have a number of options with how to attack Game 4 from a pitching perspective. And, with plenty of rain in the forecast, the timing of the game could alter plans. They could have Joey Cantillo throw several innings, leaning into some lefty-righty trends in Cleveland's favor. Regardless, the Guardians have looked like the better team in this series — albeit by only a slim margin — outside of a bad hop in Game 2. And closer Cade Smith, whenever he's available, is reaching "cheat code" levels of automatic. Guardians over Rays 5-4
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Ulrich: It should not be the least bit surprising if this ALCS were to shape up to be a back-and-forth affair. Nick Martinez could serve as Tampa Bay's starting pitcher for Game 4, though the Rays have left the door open for another approach in case weather causes a scheduling change. Should Martinez receive the nod, it could be a tough matchup for Cleveland. Martinez has had success against the Guardians this season, albeit before Cleveland acquired Jo Adell and Nathaniel Lowe before the MLB trade deadline. In 13 innings against the Guardians, Martinez allowed seven hits and no runs in two starts. Rays over Guardians 6-3
Ryan Lewis covers the Guardians for the Beacon Journal. He can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians vs. Rays predictions. Who wins Game 4 of ALCS?