Updated October 16, 2026, 8:11 p.m. ET
Bad weather threatens to once again play a major role in the American League Championship Series, with Game 4 between the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Guardians scheduled to be played in Cleveland on Friday night. Less than an hour before the first pitch, Major League Baseball announced a rain delay.
Game 3 of Thursday’s ALCS was moved up five hours to avoid harsh conditions, but Friday brings more uncertainty as forecasts call for another round of rain and wind that could further disrupt the series.
According to AccuWeather, Cleveland will see periods of showers expected through Friday evening. Temperatures are expected to drop into the 50s by game time scheduled for 8 p.m. ET and wind gusts could reach 37 mph.
The Sports Business Journal reported that MLB officials spent much of Thursday and Friday morning deliberating whether to proceed with Game 4 as scheduled or “proactively postpone it.” Their main concern is that further delays could disrupt the rest of the series and potentially eliminate a vital travel and rest day before a possible Game 6 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Cleveland currently holds a 2-1 series lead heading into Friday’s Game 4.
ALCS Game 4 will not start on time
Game 4 of the ALCS was supposed to start in Cleveland at 8 p.m. ET, but MLB announced a delay of about 40 minutes before first pitch due to rain.
According to Cleveland WEWS TV reporter Mason Horodyski, the grounds crew is preparing the ground with squeegees. They removed the tarp from the infield about 10 minutes before 8 p.m. ET.
Major League Baseball has not given a new start time for the game between the Guardians and Rays.
MLB announces postponement of start of Game 4
At 7:20 p.m. ET, Major League Baseball announced a delay, pushing back the start of Game 4 to 8:08 p.m. ET due to rain in Cleveland. A new time has not yet been decided.
“We will provide updates regarding field preparation and any other potential adjustments as they become available,” the league said in a statement.
Conditions are updated one hour before Match 4
With an hour to go before Game 4 begins at 8 p.m., light rain in Cleveland is expected to end in 22 minutes, according to AccuWeather. There are wind gusts of 33 miles per hour. There is a 70% chance that there will be precipitation at the time of the first throw.
There is no word from MLB on a delay.
Cleveland weather update
The AccuWeather forecast at 6 p.m. ET now shows showers at 8 p.m. ET with wind gusts up to 37 mph. Rain could continue until 9 a.m. Previous forecasts called for intermittent clouds at 8 a.m.
MLB will speak to teams at 6 p.m. ET
Guardians manager Stephen Vogt told reporters just before 5 p.m. ET that the game was still in progress, but that the league would speak to the teams at 6 p.m. ET to provide a weather update.
It’s raining at Progressive Field
Here is the video shared by Mason Horodyski at 4:43 p.m. ET.
Cleveland weather update
According to AccuWeather, as of 5 p.m. ET, it is 58 degrees in downtown Cleveland, with showers and wind gusts up to 35 mph. The weather is expected to remain cloudy and windy with a few showers this evening.
Tampa Bay Times reporter Marc Topkin shared some photos of the conditions on X.
The projected hourly forecast shows intermittent clouds and a temperature of 54 degrees at 8 p.m. ET.
Will the predictions impact the ALCS 4 game?
As of 3:30 p.m. ET, it’s still unclear.
Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, originally scheduled for 6 p.m. ET, was moved to 8 after the Milwaukee Brewers completed their four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Major League Baseball has made no indication that the Rays-Guardians matchup would be moved from that time slot or postponed in advance.
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