The Guardians are back in October for the third straight season, and this time the path starts with a little breathing room. After another year of coming up just short in postseason play, Cleveland gets an extra round of rest before opening the ALDS against the winner of the Astors/White Sox.
For fans looking to be there when it starts, tickets are already on the market. Game 1 of the ALDS currently has a get-in price of $100, with updated pricing and seat availability changing as the market moves.
Cleveland’s first-round schedule is set, even if the opponent is not. The Guardians will host Game 1 on Sat., Oct. 3, then Game 2 on Mon., Oct.
- If the series goes the distance, Game 3 is set for Wed., Oct.
7, Game 4 for Thurs., Oct. 8, and Game 5 for Sat., Oct. 10.
This postseason carries a little extra weight for Cleveland, which is trying to make its mark again 10 years after its last World Series appearance. The Guardians want to make Cleveland proud again, and October gives them another shot at doing it.
The full MLB playoff field is in place, with 12 teams chasing the title. In the American League, the Rays are the No. 1 seed, followed by the Guardians, then the Astors and White Sox, and the Yankees and Red Sox. In the National League, the Brewers, Dodgers, Braves, Phillies, Padres, and Cubs make up the bracket.
The MLB postseason begins with the Wild Card series on September 29. The next two rounds run through October, and the World Series begins October 23.
In Other News...
Guardians Could Face A Game 1 Lineup Squeeze In ALDS
The White Sox did not follow a standard postseason script in their Wild Card Series against the Astros, leaning on bullpen games and openers before Sean Burke handled four innings in Game 2. That kind of pitching flexibility has become part of their identity in October, and it is expected to carry over into their best-of-five ALDS matchup with the Guardians.
For Cleveland, the wrinkle is less about who starts on the mound than how Chicago chooses to deploy Davis Martin. White Sox manager Will Venable is weighing whether to use him as a conventional starter or ahead of an opener, and that decision could ripple through the Guardians Game 1 planning, especially when it comes to lineup construction and platoon choices. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians First Base Decision Just Got More Interesting For October
Nathaniel Lowe arrived in Cleveland before the trade deadline and quickly gave the Guardians a steadier look at first base over 43 games, even if the bat did not quite match the production he had shown with Cincinnati. His offense dipped by traditional measures, but Stephen Vogt has kept pointing to the same qualities that matter in a clubhouse gearing up for the stretch run: a professional approach, veteran presence and enough lineup stability to help the Guardians keep moving.
The October wrinkle is what makes Lowes role worth watching now. He has driven in 27 runs and offered the kind of dependable presence a playoff team can lean on, yet the lower batting average and wRC+ leave the first-base picture a little more complicated than it looked when he first arrived. As the postseason gets closer, the Guardians still have to decide how much they want that steadiness to define the position if a bigger offensive spark becomes available. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Draw A Dangerous White Sox Team At The Worst Time
The Guardians and White Sox spent the 2026 regular season seeing plenty of each other, meeting 13 times before Cleveland wrapped up the division on the penultimate day. Now the rivals are right back together in the ALDS, and this time the setting shifts to Progressive Field, where the Guardians will try to turn home-field advantage into an early edge in a matchup that already carries plenty of familiarity.
Chicago arrives with real momentum after sweeping the Astros in the Wild Card Series, a run that included Chase Meidroths three-run homer in a decisive moment. For Cleveland, that makes the timing of this draw a little less than ideal, because the White Sox are not just a division foe the Guardians know well - theyre a club that has just shown it can carry that confidence deep into October. [Read more 🡒]