dailynewsnblog
On Day 5 of the league championship series, one team broke a series tie … and another advanced to the World Series.
In the finale of the NLCS, the Milwaukee Brewers pulled off yet another come-from-behind win to sweep the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium and advance to their first Fall Classic since 1982.
After splitting the first two games in Tampa Bay, the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays faced off at Progressive Field in the day’s first game. Thanks to Petey Halpin — and his epic bat flip — Cleveland prevailed, taking a 2-1 ALCS lead.
We have you covered with in-game action and postgame analysis from Los Angeles and Cleveland.
Key links: How final four teams were built | Playoff MVP tracker | Schedule
Jump to: TB-CLE | MIL-LAD
Milwaukee wins series 4-0
It was over when … David Hamilton blasted a home run with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, extending the Milwaukee lead to two runs — which, for a Dodgers offense that was already down, must’ve felt like a finishing body blow. At the moment of contact, a collective ooooh could be heard in the lowest bowl of Dodger Stadium.
The stat that defined the game: The Dodgers went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position, repeatedly squandering chances to tie the game in the final innings. They had a runner at second and one out in the sixth, a runner at third with one out in the seventh and a runner at third with one out in the eighth. Time and again, they could not plate the run they needed to knot the score. — Buster Olney
Game 4 star: After a typical Brewers rally from a four-run deficit (they tied it up with no home runs), Garrett Mitchell lit up Dodgers lefty Tanner Scott for a go-ahead solo homer in the sixth. The rally typified how the Brewers play when they are at their best, and the lockdown bullpen always deserves plaudits. But it was Mitchell’s blast that put Milwaukee in position to roll out its “A” bullpen with a lead to protect. — Bradford Doolittle
Highlights from Milwaukee’s win:
Brewers complete the sweep, punch their ticket to the World Series
THE NATIONAL LEAGUE PENNANT IS COMING HOME TO MILWAUKEE
#WinOurWay https://t.co/AC1ckMgXxM
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) October 16, 2026
Milwaukee adds an insurance run in the 9th
DAVID HAMILTON WITH AN EXCLAMATION POINT! https://t.co/B7yc11dBLs
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
Dodgers continue to struggle with runners in scoring position
AARON ASHBY ESCAPES AGAIN!
3 OUTS AWAY! https://t.co/63nuErorT2
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
4th inning: 1-out single.
6th inning: 1-out double.
7th inning: leadoff double.
8th inning: 1-out triple.None of them led to runs for the Dodgers. They’re 4-for-27 with runners in scoring position in this series — and down to their last three outs.
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) October 16, 2026
Brewers take lead off of Mitchell’s solo homer
GARRETT MITCHELL!
THE BREWERS HAVE COME ALL THE WAY BACK TO TAKE THE LEAD! https://t.co/dOx9zZUHT7
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
A bases-loaded walk from Vesia ties the game
Jake Bauers draws a bases-loaded walk!
TIE GAME! https://t.co/zeZgMPkMVG
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
Bauers’ 2-run double makes it 4-2
Another JB masterclass cuts the deficit in half https://t.co/rhnus6jdtx
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) October 16, 2026
Ohtani breaks slump with 3-run blast to give L.A. 4-run lead
SHOHEI OHTANI
HOME RUN https://t.co/HSlZDqSDNj— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
Pages gets Dodgers on the board first
Andy Pages gets the Dodgers on the board first in Game 4! https://t.co/nl6eid9GDk
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
The Dodgers have their fourth hit in 34 at-bats with runners in scoring position, and Andy Pages has three of them. His base hit up the middle gives the Dodgers a 1-0 lead in the second.
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) October 16, 2026
Game 4 kicks off with wild play
Game 4 is off to a wild start!
Mookie Betts sticks with the deflection and makes the play 😳 https://t.co/0mHZftTqYo
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
Cleveland leads series 2-1
It was over when … Petey Halpin cranked a 96 mph sinker down the middle from Griffin Jax in the fifth inning. The ball landed deep into the right-field seats, 385 feet away, for a go-ahead two-run home run. Halpin flipped his bat nearly that high, too, and Cleveland didn’t look back.
Game 3 star: Halpin, who began the season in Triple-A, had four big league home runs — all during the regular season — in 213 career plate appearances before Thursday. The center fielder’s first postseason homer was the difference Thursday.
The stat that defined the game: The Rays’ 13 strikeouts against Guardians pitching. The Rays posted the lowest strikeout rate in the majors this season at 18.8%. They struck out more than 12 times once, when they compiled 14 strikeouts against the Milwaukee Brewers back on March 30 in their fourth game of the season. Rays star Junior Caminero went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts — matching a career high from 2025. So Thursday was an extreme outlier. Guardians starter Gavin Williams, the American League’s strikeout leader this season, had nine strikeouts in five innings before four relievers combined for the remaining four punchouts. Tampa Bay will have to put the ball in play more to come back and win this series.
What it means for the rest of the series: With rain in the forecast Friday, there’s a chance this series won’t play Game 4 until Saturday. If so, the clubs would play Game 5 on Sunday, which would take away their travel day before a potential Game 6 in Tampa Bay on Monday. For now, Game 4 is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET Friday. — Jorge Castillo
Highlights from the Guardians’ win:
Halpin’s homer, um, flips lead back to Guardians
PETEY HALPIN!
GUARDIANS LEAD! https://t.co/IGTS1y8p8T
— MLB (@MLB) October 15, 2026
🎵 If you believe
They put a bat on the moon
Bat on the moon 🎵 https://t.co/EfBPpUIN8Q— MLB (@MLB) October 15, 2026
Simpson silences Cleveland crowd with two-run triple
CHANDLER SIMPSON GO-AHEAD TRIPLE! https://t.co/3qrpyZffD7
— MLB (@MLB) October 15, 2026
2nd time through not as dominant. 2b, BB, 3b and now the Rays lead 2-1 Top 4. Should Kwan have caught that leadoff double?
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) October 15, 2026
Gavin gettin’ it done early
Gavin Williams is perfect though 3. Getting it done with his sweeper and curve. Just 6 fastballs out of 32 pitches. Cleveland leads 1-0 bot 3.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) October 15, 2026
For all the great pitching in the postseason, no one looks better than Gavin Williams right now. His stuff is huge and through three innings of Game 3, he’s got 28 strikes on 35 pitches and five Ks. Another Guardians pitching-development success story in a long line of them.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 15, 2026
Guardians score first on Lowe’s double
Nathaniel Lowe puts the Guardians on the board first in Game 3! https://t.co/hPpRSya8Ui
— MLB (@MLB) October 15, 2026
A series-defining day?
Guardians/Rays starting up. Williams v Jax. Last time Williams was on the mound, he was striking out White Sox hitters left and right. We’ll see what he has in the tank today. Winner of series tied 1-1 goes on to win 70 percent of the time.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) October 15, 2026
