MLB Playoff Schedule 2014: Updated ALCS, NLCS Bracket, Day 12 Predictions

Even when the Kansas City Royals fall flat on their face, they somehow prosper.

The Royals defeated the Orioles 2-1 to take a 3-0 lead in the American League Championship Series, with the highlight play an acrobatic catch from third baseman Mike Moustakas. Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones hit a pop fly into foul territory, and Moustakas gave chase and tumbled over the dugout wall head and glove-hand first to secure the out.

It was a sensational play that encapsulated the Royals' sensational postseason run, one defined by stellar defense and routine late-game heroics.

The Royals are one game away from making good on their magical underdog run and reaching the World Series for the first time since they won it all in 1985.

Meanwhile, in the National League Championship Series, the San Francisco Giants host the Cardinals with a 2-1 series lead courtesy of a walk-off error in Game 3. 

The Orioles still have a slim chance of making it to the World Series, but it will take a heroic—not to mention historic—performance to take four straight games from the hotter-than-blue-flame Royals.

Here is a quick look at the schedule for Day 12 of the MLB playoffs, followed by some Game 4 predictions.

League	Matchup	Series	Time (ET)	TV	Prediction
ALCS	Orioles at Royals	KC 3-0 BAL	4 p.m.	TBS	Royals
NLCS	Cardinals at Giants	SF 2-1 STL	8 p.m.	Fox Sports 1	Cardinals

An updated MLB playoff bracket can be found at MLB.com.

Day 12 Predictions

ALCS Game 4: Baltimore Orioles at Kansas City Royals (KC leads series 3-0)

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

The Royals outfield is where would-be doubles and bloopers go to die. The trio of Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain and Nori Aoki make life a whole lot less stressful for their starting pitchers with their incredible range, communication and glove work. This is good for Game 4 starter Jason Vargas, who went 11-10 during the regular season with a 3.71 ERA. He will be taking the mound instead of staff ace James Shields.

"The thought process," said Royals manager Ned Yost, via MLB.com's Jane Lee, "Vargy has had a bunch of rest. We thought it beneficial to give Shields an extra day."

Hopefully, the outfield will back him up. Grantland's Ben Lindbergh chronicled the exploits of the Royals outfield and noted that it is at its best when Gordon and Cain are joined by Jarrod Dyson:

"

In 172 combined regular-season and postseason games this year, the Royals have logged 1,512.2 defensive innings. The ultimate outfield has been in effect for almost a quarter of those innings — 360.1, or the equivalent of roughly 40 nine-inning games. In those innings, Royals pitchers have allowed 256 fly balls in play. And of those, 15 have fallen for hits, 11 of them for extra bases.

"

Say it again, everyone: defense wins championships. So do a bucketload of timely home runs (a much-needed addendum when talking baseball). Moustakas has homered twice in this series, including a 10th-inning bomb in Game 1 that gave the Royals an 8-5 advantage they would not relinquish. Gordon knocked in a homer in that contest as well.

The Orioles, to their credit, have been right in the thick of every game, but they just haven't been able to kill off this team when it counts. They put up just three hits in Game 3, a paltry sum that hardly gets it done in the playoffs, let alone any baseball game.

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

"We can't get it done with three hits," O's designated hitter Nelson Cruz said, via MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. "The offense has to do a better job, has to find a way to score runs, get hits and we haven't been able to do it."

Game 4 starter Miguel Gonzalez, who posted a 3.23 ERA this season, will likely need more support than that, which only compounds the dire straits this team is in.

The frustration and tension has to be palpable in the Orioles locker room, while the Royals can play a little bit looser and more aggressively with a three-game cushion. Look for them to make quick work of Baltimore and log a trip to the World Series.

Prediction: Kansas City wins 4-2

NLCS Game 4: St. Louis Cardinals at San Francisco Giants (SF leads series 2-1)

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

The Cardinals came all the way back from four runs down in Game 3, only to botch the game when reliever Randy Choate threw the ball away on a Gregor Blanco bunt, allowing Brandon Crawford to score in the 10th inning. It's a demoralizing loss to be sure, but this team still has plenty of fight left in it.

The Giants will send out Ryan Vogelsong to start the game. He finished the regular season with an 8-13 record and a 4.00 ERA. He did struggle down the stretch, finishing September with a 5.53 ERA, per CBSSports.com.

Young Shelby Miller gets the nod for the Cardinals. He already has some pressure postseason experience under his belt, dueling against Clayton Kershaw in the Cardinals' Game 4 National League Division Series victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He's ready to take the mound again and deliver for his team.

"I think when tomorrow comes, you'll have a little…it will be the same feeling. Even with that one start under your belt, you're starting in a hectic environment in San Francisco," Miller said, via MLB.com's Corey Brock. "[They've] got great fans that are loud and know baseball and love their team."

The Cardinals will be hoping that talismanic catcher Yadier Molina, who left Game 2 with a strained oblique, will be able to contribute at some point in this series. They've kept their Gold Glove-winning backstop on the active roster and could use him as a defensive replacement, as he has yet to take batting practice, per a report from ESPN.com.

This series has been decidedly cutthroat, with the Giants almost lucky to be up by a game. The Cardinals, led by second baseman Kolten Wong and center fielder Jon Jay (.500 batting average in playoffs), should be able to take care of Vogelsong and even up the series.

Prediction: St. Louis wins 3-1