Yesterday, the National League (NL) commanded the spotlight, as the four remaining American League (AL) teams received the day off. The Milwaukee Brewers engineered a dramatic walk-off rally against San Diego Padres elite closer Mason Miller to move one win away from the NL Championship Series. In the second game of the day, the Atlanta Braves defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2 to even the best-of-five series.
Today, attention shifts to the AL Division Series, with two high-stakes Game 2s on the schedule.
Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Guardians (5:00 PM EDT)
The upstart White Sox continued their hot start to the postseason by shutting out the rusty Cleveland Guardians 3-0 in Game 1 of this intradivisional matchup. With the series shifting to Chicago for the next two games, another win this afternoon would give the White Sox an opportunity to sweep their division rivals in their first home playoff game since 2021. As a result, the Guardians must find a way to win this contest to avoid facing elimination on the road.
Left-hander Anthony Kay will open the game for the White Sox. He will likely pitch the first couple of innings before giving way to fellow season-long rotation mate right-hander Sean Burke, who will serve as the bulk relief pitcher.
The Guardians will turn to right-hander Gavin Williams, who finished the regular season 14-8 with an AL-high 248 strikeouts.
New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays (8:00 PM EDT)
Aaron Judge’s absence limits the potency of the Yankees’ offense. Rays ace Drew Rasmussen and closer Bryan Baker combined for a one-hit shutout in Tampa Bay’s 1-0 series-opening victory. Now, New York will look to bounce back and even the series before it shifts to the Bronx.
AL Cy Young favorite Cam Schlittler will look to win his first two playoff starts of 2026. The right-hander earned the win in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox after striking out ten over 6 1/3 innings.
The Rays will counter with right-hander Freddy Peralta, who went 5-2 with a 3.25 ERA in 10 starts after the New York Mets traded him to Tampa Bay at the trade deadline.
