The American League Championship Series is tied 1-1 after the Guardians and Rays split the first two games at Tropicana Field. Cleveland won Game 1, 7-3, on October 12; Tampa Bay answered with a 3-1 Game 2 win on October 13. After Wednesday’s off day, the series moves to Cleveland for Game 3 on October 15.

How Tampa Bay reached the ALCS

Tampa Bay went 98-64, the best record in the American League, and won the AL East for the first time in five years. That earned the top seed and a bye past the Wild Card round.

The Rays then swept the New York Yankees, winning 1-0 and 5-2 at Tropicana Field and 4-3 at Yankee Stadium on October 7. It was the first sweep of a best-of-five-or-longer postseason series in franchise history, and it sent Tampa Bay to the third ALCS in club history, after 2008 and 2020. The Rays reached the World Series in both of those seasons.

The sweep also left the club idle from October 8 through October 11 before Game 1.

Tampa Bay scored 10 runs across the three games. Jonathan Aranda went 4-for-12 with a home run, and Ryan Vilade and Victor Mesa Jr. each homered in Game 3.

How Cleveland came through the ALDS

Cleveland won the AL Central at 85-77 and took the second seed, which came with a bye as well.

The Guardians lost the first two games of the Division Series at home to the sixth-seeded Chicago White Sox, 0-3 and 3-4. They won 9-3 and 9-5 at Rate Field in Chicago, then took Game 5 at Progressive Field 2-0 on October 10. Cleveland is the 11th team to lose the first two games of a best-of-five postseason series and still win it, and the first since the 2017 Yankees. The Guardians played five games in eight days, then had one day off before flying to Florida.

Current ALCS score and remaining schedule

GameDateResult or statusSite
Game 1Mon, Oct 12Final: Guardians 7, Rays 3Tropicana Field
Game 2Tue, Oct 13Final: Rays 3, Guardians 1Tropicana Field
Game 3Thu, Oct 15ScheduledProgressive Field
Game 4Fri, Oct 16ScheduledProgressive Field
Game 5Sat, Oct 17ScheduledProgressive Field
Game 6Mon, Oct 19Scheduled, if neededTropicana Field
Game 7Tue, Oct 20Scheduled, if neededTropicana Field

The clubs have an off day on October 14 before Tampa Bay travels to Cleveland. The format remains 2-3-2: the Rays opened at home as the American League’s top seed, while the Guardians host Games 3 through 5. If the series lasts seven games, Games 6 and 7 return to Tropicana Field. The winner needs four victories to advance to the World Series, which is scheduled to open October 23.

Five of the six season meetings were decided by three runs or fewer

Tampa Bay won the regular-season series 5-1 and outscored Cleveland 20-8. The Rays took two of three at Progressive Field in late April, then swept three at Tropicana Field in late July by 11-3, 3-0 and 1-0. Three of the six games were decided by one run, and two of those were 1-0 Tampa Bay wins.

In the 2022 AL Wild Card Series, the Guardians swept the Rays with a 2-1 win and a 1-0 win in 15 innings.

What the 1-1 tie changes

Neither team carries a series lead into Game 3, and the venue now changes after the first two games. The Rays protected home field in Game 2 after Cleveland took the opener, leaving the series level before three scheduled games in Cleveland. The remaining schedule still allows the matchup to return to Tampa Bay for Games 6 and 7 if either club needs those wins.