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Another dominant pitching performance from Cleveland’s entire staff was combined with one clutch hit to give the Indians a 1-0 win over the Chicago Cubs in Game 3 of the World Series at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The Indians take a 2-1 lead in the series, halfway to their first title since 1948.

Pinch hitter Coco Crisp singled in Michael Martinez with one out in the top of the seventh for the game’s only run, all Cleveland would need with four pitchers combining on a five-hitter. Starter Josh Tomlin only allowed two hits but was pulled after 4 2/3 innings to make way for Andrew Miller, who threw 1 1/3 innings to pick up the while Bryan Shaw went 1 2/3 innings and closer Cody Allen finished it with 1 1/3 innings.

Chicago starter Kyle Hendricks struck out six but allowed six hits in 4 1/3 scoreless innings, the first of six pitchers for the Cubs. It was Carl Edwards who got the loss.

The Cubs were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and had zero hits with runners on base. Jorge Soler tripled with two outs in the eighth and didn’t score, and in the ninth they had runners on second and third with two out but Javier Baez struck out to end the game.

The Indians will send ace Corey Kluber out for Game 4 on Saturday, while the Cubs will send veteran John Lackey to try to even the series.

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The Cleveland Indians used dominant pitching and a few big hits to score a 6-0 win over the Chicago Cubs to take Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night at Progressive Field in Cleveland.

A pair of first-inning runs—thanks to an infield single and a hit by pitch, both with the bases loaded—were all Cleveland needed with ace Corey Kluber and stud relievers Andrew Miller and Cody Allen combining on a seven-hit shutout, the team’s second straight shutout in postseason play.

Catcher Roberto Perez had two home runs to pad the Indians’ margin of victory, a solo shot in the fourth and a three-run bomb in the eighth. He had three homers in 61 games during the regular season, when he batted .183.

Kluber went six-plus innings and allowed four hits with nine strikeouts. Eight of those were in the first three innings, the most in the first three frames of any World Series game, and six were on called strikes. He left after allowing a leadoff single in the seventh and then Miller gave up a walk and a single to load the bases with no out before getting out of the jam.

Chicago got two more on in the eighth against Miller, who threw 46 pitches in two innings of work for his most pitches since he was a starter in 2011. Allen allowed a double but then retired the other three batters to close it in the ninth.

The Cubs will look to even the series on Wednesday when Jake Arrieta goes against Cleveland’s Trevor Bauer. First pitch is set for just after 7 p.m. ET, moved up an hour because of a threat of rain in the area.

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It’s now a best-of-three series between the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers for a spot in the World Series. The Cubs’ 10-2 win at Los Angeles on Wednesday evened the National League Championship Series at two games apiece. Basically, the first team to claim the next two victories moves on.

Now we’re guaranteed to get two more matchups between the Cubs and Dodgers: first Game 5 on Thursday at Dodger Stadium and then Saturday at Wrigley Field in Chicago. None is more important than the next one, though, because it puts the winner in position to advance the following game.

Surprisingly, past scenarios like the one we’re currently in haven’t favored the team with home-field advantage for the rest of the series. According to ESPN, in league championship series where the road team won Game 4 to make it 2-2, only three of nine teams who had two of the next three at home ended up making the World Series.

What are the keys for each team in order to win this pivotal fifth game? Follow along as we break down what both the Cubs and Dodgers need to do in order to take the next one.

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The Los Angeles Dodgers have taken control of the National League Championship Series, seizing a 2-1 lead after blanking the Chicago Cubs 6-0 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers spread 10 hits and scored in four different innings, getting a two-run home run from Yasmani Grandal in the fourth inning and a solo shot from Justin Turner in the sixth. Grandal had three RBI while Corey Seager and Joc Pederson also had run-scoring hits for Los Angeles, which has won two straight after losing the opener 8-3.

Rich Hill held the Cubs to two hits over six innings, with Chicago managing only four hits in getting shut out for a second consecutive game. Chicago starter Jake Arrieta was chased after allowing four runs in five-plus in his first start in Dodger Stadium since his 2015 no-hitter.

Game 4 is set for 8 p.m. ET Wednesday, with the Cubs sending John Lackey against Los Angeles’ Julio Urias.

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The Cleveland Indians put together one of the greatest examples possible of a team win Monday night.

Starting pitcher Trevor Bauer’s bloody finger caused him to come out in the first inning, and the Indians used seven pitchers to again stifle the Toronto Blue Jays in a 4-2 win in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series.

Cleveland leads the series 3-0 and can clinch its first World Series appearance since 1997 with a win Tuesday.

Mike Napoli was the offensive star for the Indians, either driving in or scoring three of their four runs. He doubled home Carlos Santana in the first inning, hit a solo home run in the fourth and scored on Jose Ramirez’s single in a two-run sixth that broke a 2-2 tie. Cleveland took the lead for good that inning on a solo home by Jason Kipnis.

Bauer, who sliced open his right pinky last week while working on a drone, began to bleed profusely against the fourth batter in the bottom of the first and had to leave after two-thirds of an inning. He was followed by six relievers—the last being Andrew Miller, who struck out three over the final 1 1/3 innings to earn the save. Bryan Shaw picked up the win.

Toronto got a solo homer from Michael Saunders in the second and an RBI groundout from Ryan Goins in the sixth after Ezequiel Carrera tripled. The Blue Jays have scored only three runs in the series.

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Francisco Lindor’s two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning provided the only scoring in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series, giving the Cleveland Indians a 2-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

Lindor roped a one-out pitch from Toronto starter Marco Estrada into the seats in right-center field, right after Jason Kipnis drew a walk. Those were the only mistakes Estrada made all game. He went the distance with six strikeouts and six hits allowed in the complete-game loss.

Cleveland starter Corey Kluber allowed six hits with six strikeouts and two walks in 6.1 innings, stranding seven Blue Jays runners on base, and then Andrew Miller followed by striking out five of six batters he faced. Cody Allen came on for a 1-2-3 ninth to get the save.

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The Chicago Cubs have moved a step closer to ending its 108-year title drought, while at the same time putting an end to the San Francisco Giants’ even-year magic.

The Cubs scored four runs in the top of the ninth inning to win 6-5, clinching the National League Division Series win in four games. Javier Baez’s RBI single scored Jason Heyward for the game-winning run, but before that Ben Zobrist had an RBI double and Willson Contreras added a two-run single as a pinch hitter.

Chicago forced the Giants to use five pitchers in the ninth, scoring three times before recording an out. Before that, San Francisco starter Matt Moore had been electric with 10 strikeouts and only two hits allowed in eight innings.

San Francisco built a 5-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI single from Conor Gillaspie and a sacrifice fly from Joe Panik. Three Giants runs cameon outs, two on sac flies and another on an RBI groundout. The fifth runs came when pitcher Moore singled with the bases loaded in the fourth to help his own cause.

The Cubs got their earlier runs on a solo home run from David Ross in the second and a sacrifice fly from Ross in the fifth.

Hector Rondon, the fifth of six Cubs pitchers, picked up the win in relief of starter John Lackey who was pulled after allowing three runs in four innings. Aroldis Chapman struck out the side for the save, a night after he blew a save during the Giants’ 13-inning victory that extended the series.

The Cubs will host either the Los Angeles Dodgers or Washington Nationals, who meet Thursday in Game 5 of their NLDS, on Saturday in the National League Championship Series.

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It took a little more than five hours, but the San Francisco Giants managed to hold off elimination for at least one night.

Joe Panik’s double off the right field wall in the bottom of the 13th scored Brandon Crawford, who had doubled to lead off the inning, to give the Giants a 6-5 win over the Chicago Cubs in a game that saw both teams rally late to force extra innings.

The Cubs, who won the first two games of the National League Division Series in Chicago, led 3-0 thanks to a three-run home run in the second from starting pitcher Jake Arrieta coming off Madison Bumgarner. Bumgarner lasted only five innings, while Arrieta was out after six while giving up single runs in the third and fifth.

It stayed that way until the eighth when, after the Cubs turned to closer Aroldis Chapman for a six-out save, Conor Gillaspie sparked a three-run inning with a two-run triple to go up 5-3.

The Cubs tied it in the ninth on Kris Bryant’s two-run homer off SF closer Sergio Romo, then it was a scoreless battle until the 13th.

Game 4 is set for 8:30 p.m. ET in San Francisco, with Matt Moore going for the Giants against Chicago’s Jon Lackey.

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A pitcher’s duel between Johnny Cueto and Jon Lester was likely to come down to one mistake, and Chicago Cubs second baseman Javier Baez was the one capitalize on that lone slip-up.

Baez’s solo home run with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning was the only scoring in Game 1 of the National League Division Series, a 1-0 win for the Cubs over the visiting San Francisco Giants.

That was one of just three hits that Cueto allowed while striking out 10. He’d retired eight in a row before going to 3-2 on Baez and left one over the plate. The ball barely cleared the fence in left field, wedging into the basket over the ivy.

Lester allowed five hits and struck out six in eight innings for Chicago, retiring the final 13 batters he faced for the win.

Game 2 is set for Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.

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The Toronto Blue Jays are headed back north with a 2-0 lead in the American League Division Series after scoring a 5-3 win Friday over the Texas Rangers.

Four home runs off Rangers starter Yu Darvish helped Toronto build a 5-1 lead after five innings, then late clutch pitching from closer Roberto Osuna sealed the victory.

Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run homer in the second, and then Kevin Pillar, Ezequiel Carrera and Edwin Encarnacion launched solo shots in the fifth. Texas scored one in the fourth and two in the eighth but left 13 men on base including two each in the first four innings.

J.A. Happ allowed one run over five innings to pick up the win, with the Blue Jays using five relievers to finish the job. Osuna got the last five outs to get the save, allowing one hit and striking out two.

Game 3 is set for Sunday at 7:30 p.m., with Toronto looking for the sweep.

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