MLB announced Thursday that Game 3 of the American League Championship Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Guardians has been moved up from a 6 p.m. ET start to 1 p.m. ET at Progressive Field in Cleveland because of a rain forecast for Thursday night.
League officials said the earlier start is intended to avoid weather-related delays that could push the game into the evening. As a result of the shift, National League Championship Series Game 4 between the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, originally scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, will begin at 8 p.m. ET so the two playoff games no longer project to overlap.
The Guardians and Rays enter Game 3 tied 1-1 in the best-of-seven series following Tampa Bay’s 3-1 win on Tuesday. Game 3 will be televised on TBS and will stream on HBO Max and TruTV. The matchup is expected to feature Griffin Jax on the mound for Tampa Bay and Gavin Williams likely going for Cleveland.
In Game 2, the Rays’ starter went six innings, allowed zero runs and struck out six; over his past eight appearances he has posted a 0.81 ERA.
Rays manager Kevin Cash said, “It’s going to be a challenging place to play. We played there not too long ago in the postseason. That’s as good an atmosphere as you’re going to see. They’ve got a great fan base that’s going to be behind their team. I’d like to think we can carry our momentum into there and just play good baseball for Game 3.”
The schedule change will require adjustments from fans, broadcasters and local operations at Progressive Field. Tickets remain available on secondary market sites with prices starting around $107, though availability and prices can change quickly as the series progresses.
MLB said it will continue to monitor the forecast and could make additional changes if conditions warrant. Fans should check official team and league channels for any last-minute updates before heading to the ballpark. First pitch for ALCS Game 3 is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET, with NLCS Game 4 now slated to start at 8 p.m. ET.
