A tight end game sent one American League Division run to Game 5, and Cleveland'S ace Dawid Fry hit a homer and then hit the winning run in the Guardians' victory over the Detroit Tigers' Liverpool. Meanwhile, the benches were cleared on a quiet evening in Kansas City, Missouri, where the New York Yankees defeated the Royals to advance to the ALCS. Let's go around the corner.
The Yankees got two batters into the game, followed by one-run runs in the fifth and sixth. And then the confusion began. The Royals' Maikel Garcia took offense to Anthony Volpe's tags in the round of a double play, and after some barking and staring, the benches and pens emptied. No punches were thrown. I'm just barking. Even that didn't wake up the Royals lineup. The Yankees won 3-1 and now await the winner of Game 5, Rangers-Tigers.
Stocking up: Gerrit Cole
Cole was quick and economical in his second start of the series. After four runs and three runs scored against Cole in game one, the Royals had no answer for Cole in game four. (Except Tommy Pham. He knew all the answers.) Cole threw seven innings of baseball at one time on just 87 pitches. He scattered six hits, walking none, and struck out four. Since the beginning of August, Cole has allowed just 19 earned runs in 12 starts, and seven of those runs came in one start, better than the mid-September Boston Red Sox. Despite missing two and a half months this season with an elbow injury, Cole returned to ace form in October.
Gerrit Cole had an ace performance in game four. (Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
Wrestling down: Royals bats
There was cause for concern. The Royals were the worst offense in baseball in September; Bobby Witt Jr. he had an .815 OPS, everyone else had a .600 or lower. Looking to break Cole in the elimination game, Pham led the charge with three hits but received no help until Witt and Vinnie Pasquantino combined to give the Royals their only run in the sixth inning. It all might have seemed different Kyle Isbel's seventh-set tie attempt was missed on the warning track. But it was true. And that's all she wrote for the Royals.
Required reading
The fourth game was close, with multiple lead changes, but the Guardians outscored the Tigers 5-4 after they pulled away once and for all in the seventh thanks to Fry's two-run pinch hitter. It was Fry who drove a 98 mph heater into the wall, but Guardians manager Stephen Vogt deserves credit for pulling all the right strings in the elimination game, including waiting until the seventh to pinch Fry and turning to closer Emmanuel Clase had five outs in the final and started tight play correctly in the ninth. Now the Rangers host their fifth win-or-go-home game while the Tigers strike back Pull the Skubal.
Spares: David Fry
Game 4 may be remembered as “the David Fry game.” After a forgettable third game in which Fry failed to get three strikeouts down with runners in scoring position, he wasted no time in making an impact on Thursday. Pinch struck out in the seventh, with Steven Kwan standing on second, Fry hit a fastball off Tigers shortstop Beau Brieske for a two-run home run. It was Cleveland's first-ever postseason home run. Fry later hit a sacrifice fly bunt that allowed the Rangers to score a key insurance run in the ninth. After the first half, All-Star Fry was slowed by an elbow injury in the second half. But now he's the author of an iconic postseason moment.
Stocks Down: Chaos
Imposing chaos gives and imposing chaos takes away. This is the life the Tigers have chosen, for better or for worse. On Thursday it was worse. Starter Reese Olson was solid, giving up one run in four innings. However, every player who came on after him allowed an earned run until Will Vest, who recorded the final two outs. Brieske picked a bad time to give up his first postseason run. Manager AJ Hinch then tried to get two innings out of Jackson Jobe, but the rookie ran into foul trouble in the ninth inning, leading to Cleveland scoring the eventual winning run.
Required reading
On board on Friday
Padres at Dodgers. 20:08 EST, FOX, Fubo
The series was tied 2-2
SDP Yu Darvish (7-3, 3.31 ERA) vs. LAD (TBD)
Watch the MLB Playoffs on Fubo (Try Free).
Player to watch: Fernando Tatis Jr.
Tatis has been the center of attention in the Padres' postseason performance, so it seems likely that in a do-or-die game in a series as dramatic as this one, Tatis will be a major factor. To that point, Tatis had hit .500 in the postseason. Against the Dodgers, his record was 7 of 16 with 3 home runs. Xander Bogaerts recently compared Tatis to David Ortiz, and we all know Big Papi had the talent to rise to the occasion.
Is Fernando Tatis Jr. Does he still have a bit of heroism in him? (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Player to watch: Max Muncy
Muncy's importance increases as Freddie Freeman limps. He started at first base in the fourth game and scored twice. Don't let his dull batting in this series overshadow the fact that Muncy has batted really, really well in recent months. After returning from the injured list in August, he hit .245/.405/.520 with as many walks and strikeouts (27) as he hit (27). Muncy has struggled with Yu Darvish in the past, but went 1-for-3 against him in Game 2.
(Yankees post-clinch photo: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
