Level 1 - Absolute Beginner
Rain stopped a baseball game on Friday. The game was in Cleveland. It is now on Saturday night.
The Guardians play the Rays. The Guardians have two wins. The Rays have one win.
The winner will play the Brewers in the World Series. The Brewers are waiting.
- rain
- water that falls from clouds
- game
- a sport match
- win
- to finish first
- baseball
- a sport with a bat and a ball
- night
- the dark part of the day
- winner
- the person or team that wins
- wait
- to stay until something happens
- series
- a group of games between two teams
Level 2 - Elementary
Game 4 of the American League Championship Series was supposed to be played in Cleveland on Friday. Rain forced the league to move it to Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern time. Game 5 will be on Sunday evening, and there are no more days off.
The Guardians lead the Rays 2 games to 1. They won Game 1 by 7 to 3, the Rays took Game 2 by 3 to 1, and Cleveland won Game 3 by 3 to 2 on Thursday when Petey Halpin hit a home run with a runner on base.
Tampa Bay will start Nick Martinez on Saturday. The Guardians had planned a bullpen game, with Armstrong starting as the opener. The winner of the series will play the Milwaukee Brewers, who swept the Dodgers.
- postponed
- moved to a later time
- league
- a group of teams that play each other
- home run
- a hit that lets the batter run all the way around the bases
- bullpen
- the group of relief pitchers
- opener
- a pitcher who starts the game but pitches only a short time
- swept
- won every game in a series
- lead
- to be ahead
- evening
- the end of the day
Level 3 - Intermediate
Rain washed out Game 4 of the American League Championship Series in Cleveland on Friday, and the league rescheduled it for Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern. Game 5 follows on Sunday evening, and the schedule no longer contains any off days, which puts extra weight on each team's pitching depth.
The Guardians lead the best of seven series 2 games to 1. They opened with a 7 to 3 win, the Rays evened it with a 3 to 1 victory, and Cleveland regained the lead on Thursday when Petey Halpin hit a two run homer in the fifth inning to secure a 3 to 2 win. That game had been moved to 1 p.m. because of the forecast.
Both clubs kept their plans for the replacement date. Tampa Bay will hand the ball to Nick Martinez, while the Guardians intend to use a bullpen game that starts with Armstrong as the opener. Whoever advances will meet the Milwaukee Brewers, who completed a four game sweep of the Dodgers with a comeback win.
- washed out
- cancelled because of rain
- rescheduled
- given a new time or date
- depth
- the number of good players available
- evened
- made the score equal
- regained
- got back
- forecast
- a prediction of the weather
- replacement
- something that takes the place of another
- advances
- moves forward to the next round
Level 4 - Advanced
A steady rain in Cleveland washed out Game 4 of the American League Championship Series on Friday, and the league shifted it to Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern. Game 5 will be played on Sunday evening, and with the schedule stripped of off days the series now tests how deep each club's pitching staff really is.
The Guardians hold a 2 games to 1 advantage in the best of seven. They won the opener 7 to 3, the Rays squared it with a 3 to 1 victory, and Cleveland reclaimed the lead on Thursday when Petey Halpin's two run homer in the fifth inning carried a 3 to 2 win in a game that had been advanced to 1 p.m. to beat the weather.
Neither manager has altered the blueprint. Tampa Bay will turn to All Star right hander Nick Martinez, whereas Cleveland plans another bullpen game with Armstrong serving as the opener, a tactic that saves its starters for later but taxes its relievers. The survivor meets the Milwaukee Brewers, who dispatched the Dodgers in four straight, the last of them a 6 to 4 comeback.
- stripped of
- having something taken away
- advantage
- a favorable position
- squared
- made the score even
- reclaimed
- took back
- blueprint
- a detailed plan
- tactic
- a planned method to reach a goal
- taxes
- puts a heavy burden on
- dispatched
- defeated quickly
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