Petey Halpin’s two-run homer lifts Guardians past Rays for 2-1 ALCS lead

Cleveland Guardians take 2-1 lead in ALCS

The full report

The Cleveland Guardians beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series on Thursday, taking a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Petey Halpin hit a go-ahead two-run homer, his first playoff homer, to give the Guardians the lead. Gavin Williams struck out nine over five innings, allowing two runs while walking one.

The Guardians' bullpen retired 11 of the final 12 Rays batters, with Cade Smith striking out Yandy Díaz after a 10-pitch at-bat and then retiring the side in order in the ninth.

Tampa Bay went down in order in seven innings, with Junior Caminero striking out four times. The Rays batters struck out 13 times in Game 3, after combining for 14 in the first two games of the series.

The Guardians have won five of their last six playoff games since falling 2-0 behind the Chicago White Sox in their AL Division Series. Williams is 2-0 with a 2.16 ERA and 33 strikeouts over 16 and two-thirds innings in four postseason appearances this year.

Cleveland retired 16 of the Rays' final 17 batters, with Daniel Espino, Erik Sabrowski, Hunter Gaddis, and Cade Smith combining to allow just one baserunner over the final four innings.