Divisional Series Opens With Four Game 1 Matchups
The MLB Divisional Series opened Saturday with all eight remaining teams in action as the postseason moved into the best-of-five round.
The Chicago White Sox opened the ALDS with a 3-0 victory over the Cleveland Guardians, using strong pitching and timely power to take a 1-0 series lead.
Munetaka Murakami broke a scoreless tie with a two-run home run in the fourth inning after Cleveland had twice failed to capitalize with the bases loaded. Colson Montgomery added an RBI double in the seventh. Five Chicago pitchers combined to hold the Guardians to three hits while striking out 12.
In the other American League matchup, the Tampa Bay Rays defeated the New York Yankees 1-0 behind a dominant performance from Drew Rasmussen.
Rasmussen carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning, finishing with eight scoreless innings and 10 strikeouts. Jonathan Aranda provided the game’s only run with a solo homer off Gerrit Cole in the third. Austin Wells broke up the no-hit bid with a two-out double in the eighth but was thrown out attempting to reach third.
In the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Atlanta Braves 5-3 behind three home runs and six strong innings from Tarik Skubal.
Teoscar Hernández opened the scoring with a two-run homer in the fourth before Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy went deep later in the game. Skubal allowed one run on two hits while striking out seven as Los Angeles took a 1-0 series advantage.
The Milwaukee Brewers completed Saturday’s schedule with a 3-2 comeback victory over the San Diego Padres.
San Diego jumped ahead 2-0 in the second inning before Jackson Chourio tied the game with a two-run homer in the third. William Contreras provided the deciding run with a solo home run in the seventh, and Milwaukee’s bullpen protected the one-run lead the rest of the way.
Following Saturday’s action, the White Sox, Rays, Dodgers and Brewers each hold 1-0 leads in their respective Division Series as the MLB postseason moves deeper into October.
