Angels vs. Royals: Game 3 Time, TV Info, Live Stream and More

The Kansas City Royals return home one victory away from advancing to the American League Championship Series after a pair of extra-inning wins over the Los Angeles Angels. It should create quite an atmosphere inside Kauffman Stadium on Sunday night.

Although the Angels are the team with their backs against the wall, the Royals will want to close out the series as quickly as possible. Los Angeles came into the playoffs as one of the top contenders thanks to a boatload of talent. Kansas City doesn't want to let the Angels gain confidence and get back into the series.

Each of the first two games went 11 innings. Mike Moustakas was the hero in Game 1 with a tie-breaking home run, and Eric Hosmer followed suit in Game 2. Credit also goes to Jason Vargas, Yordano Ventura and the team's terrific bullpen for holding the potent Angels to three runs in 22 innings.

Now the question is whether the Royals can end the series before Los Angeles' offense awakes from its ill-timed slumber. Let's check out all of the important information for Game 3, followed by a preview and prediction.

Game 3 Info

Where: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri

When: Sunday, Oct. 5, at 7:37 p.m. ET

Watch: TBS

Live Stream: TBS.com

Preview

If the Angels are going to start a comeback bid Sunday night, it will have to start by overcoming an unfavorable pitching matchup. The Royals will send ace James Shields (3.21 ERA, 3.59 FIP) to the mound to face off with C.J. Wilson (4.51 ERA, 4.31 FIP).

Shields started the Wild Card Game for Kansas City. He failed to live up to his “Big Game” moniker, however, giving up four runs in five innings before the offense mounted a comeback to edge the Oakland Athletics. In fact, he has a 5.26 ERA in seven career postseason starts.

Alas, Wilson has looked out of sorts almost all season for L.A. He started the season fine, posting a 3.05 ERA through the first two months. He hasn't had an ERA below 4.76 in any month since, though. All the Angels can do is hope for a sudden return to form.

What makes Kansas City so difficult to play against in these high-tension situations is its ability to wreak havoc on the basepaths. The team has a lackluster .285 on-base percentage through three playoff games, but it hasn't lost yet because of its strong pitching and every hit or walk being a rally.

The Royals have stolen 11 bases while being caught just once. In the playoffs, where the importance of every run is magnified, being able to get into scoring position like that is a major advantage.

Jim Caple of ESPN passed along comments from manager Ned Yost, who praised the well-rounded nature of his team.

"We can hit home runs, [but] we don't live and die by them," he said. "We have other things that we can use to help us win ballgames. We're aggressive on the bases. We've got great defense. We've got great pitching, starting and bullpen. We've got guys that can hit home runs."

It's a complete team effort and one that allowed the Royals to do something no other team in history had accomplished, as noted by Josh Vernier of Fox Sports Kansas City:

While everything is seemingly trending in Kansas City's direction, it's impossible to count out the Angels due to their star power.

Mike Trout and Albert Pujols headline a lineup that is as deep as any in baseball when it's clicking on all cylinders. That obviously hasn't been the case so far, but it's often just one big hit that can get a team back on track.

Those two marquee names are just 1-for-16 in the series. Josh Hamilton, who's struggled mightily at the plate since the All-Star break, is hitless in nine at-bats.

So while all signs point to Kansas City finishing the job Sunday, postseason baseball rarely follows the expected script. And it's hard to imagine an Angels team with so much talent bowing out with a whimper in three games.

Coming all the way back from down 2-0 with two road games up next is an extreme uphill battle. But if they can win Game 3, the Angels will at least give themselves a glimmer of hope.

Prediction: Angels 4, Royals 3