Chicago still holds the edge, but the American League Division Series has a little more edge to it now. Cleveland’s 9-3 Game 3 win at Rate Field on Wednesday kept the Guardians alive, trimmed the White Sox lead to 2-1, and sent the clubs back out Thursday with one side trying to finish the job and the other trying to force a return to Ohio.
Messick gets the ball with Cleveland season on the line
The Guardians will hand Game 4 to left-hander Parker Messick, their Game 1 starter and one of the club’s biggest reasons for confidence in an elimination game. Messick allowed two runs on four hits, including a two-run homer, over his first outing of the series. He walked two and struck out six.
His work at Rate Field during the regular season offers Cleveland another encouraging line. In 14 2/3 innings there this year, Messick posted a 2.45 ERA with 18 strikeouts and two walks. On June 23, he went 7 2/3 innings in the park, gave up two runs and punched out 10.
“I’m ready to rock ’n’ roll,” Messick said after Cleveland’s Game 3 response.
The Guardians received 19 strikeouts from their pitching staff Wednesday, setting an MLB postseason record for a nine-inning game. Cleveland also got 4 1/3 innings from Foster Griffin and Joey Cantillo, a valuable bridge that left more options available behind Messick.
- Closer Cade Smith threw 19 pitches across two innings in Game 3, but Cleveland is expected to consider him for Thursday because it is an elimination game.
- Jo Adell has rebounded from an 0-for-4 postseason debut, going 3-for-7 with four RBIs over the past two games.
- Adell and José Ramírez each tripled Wednesday, the first time the Guardians have had two triples in one postseason game.
- Angel Martínez enters Game 4 hitless in 12 postseason at-bats, with seven strikeouts.
Manager Stephen Vogt knows the assignment is plain enough: win in Chicago and take the series back to Cleveland. “They’ll be prepared because they want to finish it at home,” Vogt said. “It should be another exciting game.”
White Sox turn again to the opener route
Chicago will counter with rookie left-hander Hagen Smith as an opener, continuing the flexible pitching arrangement that has carried the White Sox through the postseason. The club has leaned on short starts, extended relief appearances and matchup-based decisions rather than a traditional rotation pattern.
Smith will make his third postseason start, and his second against Cleveland in this series. Chicago is 2-0 in games he has started. Smith threw 21 pitches in Game 3 after taking over for Bryan Hudson during Cleveland’s four-run third inning. Jo Adell’s bases-clearing triple, which landed fair down the first-base line, came against Smith.
Smith and fellow second-year pitcher Grant Taylor have been a particularly effective tandem in October. Across six appearances and 14 total innings, they have combined for 17 strikeouts while allowing two runs, only one of them earned.
“I feel good,” Smith said. “Everybody trusts one another, plays hard and keeps fighting until the final out. I’m very confident for tomorrow.”
Will Venable has some bullpen choices to sort through on consecutive days, though Noah Schultz’s three innings Wednesday helped preserve other arms. Schultz, Tyler Davis, David Sandlin and Davis Martin all worked in the Game 3 loss, while Erick Fedde and Jordan Hicks are rested. Taylor figures to be central to any effort to close out the series.
“We’ll look at what capacity some of these guys have,” Venable said. “Schultz was in the plan today and did a good job covering innings in the middle. That gives us a chance to reset and assess where we stand.”
Projected lineups and Thursday details
Cleveland is expected to make one change from its nine-run Game 3 lineup, with Austin Hedges catching Messick. Chicago is set to stack its order with right-handed hitters against the left-handed Messick, though lefty-swinging Sam Antonacci remains an option after helping drive the White Sox offense during the postseason.
Guardians projected lineup
- Steven Kwan, CF
- José Ramírez, 3B
- Chase DeLauter, RF
- Jo Adell, DH
- Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
- Angel Martínez, LF
- Travis Bazzana, 2B
- Austin Hedges, C
- Brayan Rocchio, SS
White Sox projected lineup
- Chase Meidroth, 2B
- Miguel Vargas, 3B
- Munetaka Murakami, 1B
- Randal Grichuk, LF
- Tommy Pham, DH
- Kyle Teel, C
- Brenton Doyle, CF
- Braden Montgomery, RF
- Colson Montgomery, SS
- Game 4 is scheduled for Thursday at 8 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. CT.
- The game will air on TBS, truTV, UniMas and HBO Max.
- UniMas will carry Spanish-language television coverage, with Spanish audio available through TUDN Radio.
- ESPN Radio will provide national radio coverage of the 2026 postseason.
One win from a long-awaited home celebration
The White Sox are seeking their first home postseason series clincher since 1906, and they will again have the champagne prepared. But after striking out 19 times in Game 3, Chicago’s immediate task is less ceremonial: put more balls in play, control the strike zone on the mound and keep Messick from settling into the kind of outing he delivered at this ballpark in June.
Wednesday’s strikeout total was the highest in White Sox postseason history, topping the 14 recorded in a 1983 game at Baltimore. There were still a few individual notes amid the loss. Schultz became the third Illinois-born White Sox pitcher to appear in a postseason game for the franchise, joining Neal Cotts and Hudson. Antonacci became the first rookie, and the first designated hitter, to bat leadoff in a White Sox postseason game. Vargas has reached base eight times in the series.
That is the Game 4 tension in one frame: Cleveland has its ace and a chance to extend the fight, while Chicago has a packed home crowd, a bullpen plan and one more opportunity to turn a promising series into an ALCS ticket.
