Guardians open with Shawn Armstrong, Rays go with Nick Martinez in ALCS Game 4

Game 4 setup

Game 4 of the American League Championship Series between the Cleveland Guardians and the Tampa Bay Rays is set for Friday night, Oct. 16, at Progressive Field in Cleveland. Cleveland leads the best-of-seven series 2-1 after a 3-2 win in Game 3 on Thursday. ^{[2] [5]}

Yahoo Sports reported the first pitch is 8:08 p.m. ET and that MLB's Friday morning release had listed 6:10 p.m. in error. The Milwaukee Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, so no NLCS game was scheduled for 9 p.m. ET and the game was placed in primetime, Yahoo reported. MLB.com lists television coverage on TBS, truTV, UniMas and HBO Max. ^{[3] [2]}

Yahoo Sports said rain was possible earlier in the day but the chance of precipitation drops by about 7 p.m. ET. ^[3]

Probable pitchers

Cleveland will open with right-hander Shawn Armstrong, according to ESPN and WKBN. Armstrong went 2-1 with a 4.58 ERA in 41 regular-season games for the Guardians, with 34 strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings, WKBN reported. He has thrown 5 1/3 scoreless innings over four appearances this postseason. ^{[1] [4]}

Tampa Bay will start Nick Martinez, ESPN and MLB.com reported. MLB.com wrote that Cleveland has no clearly rested starter for Game 4, so manager Stephen Vogt must mix and match, and that closer Cade Smith has appeared in seven of the team's eight playoff games. ^{[1] [2]}

What to watch

MLB.com noted Tampa Bay has scored no more than three runs in any game this series, and that Caminero, Díaz and Aranda, the Rays' top three hitters in the regular season, are a combined 5-for-34 with one home run. On the Cleveland side, rookie Petey Halpin hit the go-ahead homer in Game 3 and catcher Patrick Bailey is slugging .609 this postseason, MLB.com said. ^[2]

In Game 3, Halpin's two-run homer in the fifth inning off Griffin Jax gave Cleveland a 3-2 win. Gavin Williams struck out nine over five innings and Smith earned the save. ^[5]

What is next

The winner of the ALCS faces the Brewers in the World Series, MLB.com reported. Milwaukee's sweep of the Dodgers sent it to its first World Series since 1982. A Cleveland win Friday would put the Guardians one victory from the pennant, while a Tampa Bay win would level the series at 2-2. Start times and pitching plans can change, and this report will be updated once the game is final. ^[2]