Steady rain in Cleveland forced MLB to postpone Game 4 of the American League Championship Series. The stadium grounds crew was forced to pull the tarp well before the scheduled 8 p.m. ET first pitch.
The grounds crew continued working in an effort to salvage the game, but by approximately 9 p.m. ET, the league announced the game had been moved to Saturday. The postponement also pushed Game 5 to Sunday, eliminating the scheduled off day and travel day for the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays.
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Should the series go the distance, the Guardians and Rays will play four games in four days to determine which advances to the World Series. Games 6 and 7 were already scheduled for consecutive days, Monday and Tuesday.
In a statement acknowledging the inclement weather, the Guardians also said tickets purchased for Friday night’s game would be honored.
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“Fans with tickets to the original ALCS Game 4 on Friday, October 16 may use those same tickets for ALCS Game 5 on Sunday, October 18 at 5:00 p.m. ET. Gates will open at 2:30 p.m. ET.”
Before tonight’s decision, it had been nearly four years since rain forced a postseason game to be rescheduled. The previous rainout came on Halloween in 2022, pushing Game 3 of the World Series between the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies to the following day. Philadelphia shut out Houston 7-0 on Nov. 1, 2022.