Cleveland has little room to drift after Chicago’s 3-0 Game 1 win, and Monday evening at Progressive Field brings the Guardians back to the edge of the American League Division Series. The White Sox can take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five set and move within one victory of the AL Championship Series, while Cleveland turns to Gavin Williams to square the matchup before it heads to Chicago.
Game 2 setup at Progressive Field
First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET Monday, with TBS, truTV and HBO Max carrying the game. UniMas will air the Spanish-language television broadcast, while TUDN Radio will have Spanish audio coverage. ESPN Radio will carry the national postseason broadcast.
Chicago is keeping its focus narrow after the opening shutout. Shortstop Colson Montgomery said the club is treating the series one day at a time, enjoying the win without getting ahead of itself, then reviewing what worked before returning to the field.
The Guardians had three hits and drew five walks in Game 1, but they could not convert either of their bases-loaded chances in the third and fourth innings. Both rallies came with two outs.
Outfielder Jo Adell called October baseball a pitching battle and said Cleveland must use the off-day to regroup before playing its game Monday.
- Chicago won Game 1 behind a shutout, the franchise’s sixth in postseason play.
- It was the White Sox’s first playoff shutout since their 1-0 World Series-clinching victory in 2005.
- Cleveland rookie Parker Messick became the club’s first rookie postseason starter since Ryan Merritt started Game 5 of the 2016 ALCS.
Williams gets the ball as Chicago weighs its opening move
Williams, Cleveland’s hard-throwing right-hander, takes the mound after finishing second in the Majors with 248 strikeouts. Only Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski, with 252, recorded more. Williams also led MLB with 11 starts of at least 10 strikeouts.
The 2026 regular season was a workload jump and a career year for Williams. He made 32 starts, worked 184 1/3 innings and posted a 3.76 ERA. In 10 of those starts, he completed at least seven innings. His most recent outing, however, was a shorter one: he gave up four runs on five hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings against Kansas City on Sept. 25. He threw 70 pitches in a simulated game Wednesday to stay sharp for this assignment.
There is one matchup within the matchup. Of Williams’ 77 earned runs allowed this year, 50.6 percent came on home runs, the sixth-highest rate among the 65 pitchers who reached 150 innings. Chicago ranked fifth in the Majors in homers during the regular season.
The White Sox have not formally named a starter. Manager Will Venable has leaned on an opener-and-bulk-reliever arrangement, and Sean Burke is expected to handle a major share of the innings whether he enters first, second or third.
- Burke struck out 185 hitters across 172 1/3 regular-season innings.
- Against Cleveland this season, he went 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA in three outings, including two starts.
- He fanned 21 Guardians and issued three walks over 17 1/3 innings.
- Burke owns a 2.57 career ERA at Progressive Field.
Projected lineups favor the left-handed White Sox bats
With the right-handed Williams starting for Cleveland, Chicago is set to return to a more left-handed lineup. Sam Antonacci will lead off, while Andrew Benintendi and Tristan Peters are back in the starting group.
White Sox lineup
- Sam Antonacci, LF
- Kyle Teel, C
- Miguel Vargas, 3B
- Munetaka Murakami, 1B
- Andrew Benintendi, DH
- Chase Meidroth, 2B
- Tristan Peters, CF
- Braden Montgomery, RF
- Colson Montgomery, SS
Murakami supplied most of Chicago’s Game 1 offense with a 440-foot homer. He has previously shown how quickly one long ball can turn into a streak, having homered in five consecutive games in April.
Cleveland’s order largely resembles its Game 1 alignment, with Nathaniel Lowe expected at first base against Burke. Lowe pinch-hit for David Fry in the fourth inning Saturday. Patrick Bailey will catch Williams rather than Austin Hedges; Bailey was his regular-season battery mate on many occasions.
Guardians lineup
- Steven Kwan, CF
- José Ramírez, 3B
- Chase DeLauter, RF
- Jo Adell, DH
- Travis Bazzana, 2B
- Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
- Angel Martínez, LF
- Patrick Bailey, C
- Brayan Rocchio, SS
Kwan enters looking to find his October rhythm. He is 2-for-15 over four postseason games dating to 2025.
Relief options remain part of the Game 2 picture
Chicago rode Taylor for an old-school four-inning save Saturday, but the right-hander threw only 42 pitches, 34 for strikes. Hagen Smith threw 51 pitches in 2 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out four before exiting in the third after loading the bases on walks. Sunday’s off-day leaves open the possibility that either could be available again.
Anthony Kay is another important option after shifting effectively from the rotation into relief. He has delivered key outs both in Houston and in Saturday’s Cleveland win. Kay said postseason work brings an extra rush and that he values the club’s trust in him, adding that his job is to continue executing pitches.
For Cleveland, the off-day also gives manager Stephen Vogt a chance to use his bullpen aggressively once more. Daniel Espino, Erik Sabrowski, Hunter Gaddis, Tim Herrin and closer Cade Smith all followed Messick in Game 1 and are expected to remain available. The Guardians’ preferred late-game script is clear: get the ball to Smith with a lead to protect.
- Smith has worked five scoreless innings across his last five postseason appearances.
- Cleveland has not announced a Game 3 starter.
- Tanner Bibee, Foster Griffin and Joey Cantillo remain possible options if needed before Game 3.
That uncertainty makes Williams’ outing especially important. The Guardians need length if they can get it, but more than anything they need a clean reset: a few more swings that find grass, a timely hit with runners aboard, and a series that is no longer tilting toward Chicago by the time the clubs leave Progressive Field Monday night.
