ALCS Game 3 winners and losers: Guardians retake series lead vs. Rays thanks to unlikely home run

The Cleveland Guardians are two wins away from their first pennant since 2016. The Guardians rallied in the middle innings to win Game 3 over the Tampa Bay Rays at Progressive Field on Thursday afternoon (CLE 3, TB 2). The game had been moved up from 6 p.m. ET to 1 p.m. ET due to incoming rain. Cleveland leads the best-of-seven series 2-1.

After hitting the fourth fewest home runs in baseball during the regular season, the Guardians again leaned on the long ball in their Game 3 win. Defense-first outfielder Petey Halpin provided the big blow with a two-run homer in the fifth inning. In Game 1, the Guardians used solo homers from Chase DeLauter and Patrick Bailey to erase an early 2-0 deficit. It was the first postseason career home run for Halpin, who had just four in the regular season.

Gavin Williams held the Rays to two runs in five innings. He struck out nine and threw only 70 pitches. Williams was taken out early because he threw 94 pitches five days ago, and came out of the bullpen two days before that. His velocity had begun to slip in the fifth inning, so manager Stephen Vogt…

Original source: https://www.cbssports.com/