The Guardians will open their American League Division Series at home with rookie left-hander Parker Messick on the mound, handing him the ball for Saturday afternoon’s Game 1 against the White Sox. Manager Stephen Vogt lined up Gavin Williams, Cleveland’s strikeout leader, for Game 2 on Monday.
Both games are scheduled for Cleveland, with Game 1 set for a 1 p.m. ET first pitch Saturday. It will be Messick’s first taste of October baseball, but the 25-year-old arrives with the kind of regular-season body of work that makes the assignment feel earned rather than adventurous.
Messick made 32 starts in his rookie season, posting a 2.56 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. A first-time All-Star and a contender for American League Rookie of the Year honors, he also got a useful preview of this matchup during the season. He faced Chicago four times, working 25 2/3 innings with 29 strikeouts and a 2.81 ERA. Cleveland split those four games.
Williams follows in Game 2
Williams, 27, will take the mound Monday carrying considerably more postseason experience, even if his October record has included a few hard lessons. The right-hander made 32 starts and finished with a 3.76 ERA while leading the American League with 248 strikeouts.
His four regular-season outings against the White Sox produced a 3.98 ERA across 20 1/3 innings. Williams did not allow more than three runs in any of them, though he did not reach the sixth inning in any of the four starts. Cleveland went 1-3 in those games.
This marks Williams’ third postseason appearance. His first came in the 2024 ALCS against the Yankees, when he was charged with three runs in 2 1/3 innings. He rebounded in last year’s Wild Card Series against the Tigers, striking out eight over six innings. Two unearned runs crossed the plate that day, and Williams took the loss despite the stronger outing.
The White Sox entered the Division Series after sweeping Houston in the Wild Card round. Chicago used a bullpen game in one victory and received a start from Sean Burke in the other, but has not yet named its starters for the Cleveland portion of the series.
