One game is all that remains between the White Sox and Guardians, a fitting finish for two AL Central clubs that have spent the season trading punches. Their Division Series returns to Progressive Field on Saturday night with the series tied 2-2, Cleveland’s crowd ready for another October test and a trip to face the top-seeded Rays in the ALCS on the line.
Key takeaways
- Game 5 is set for Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with TBS, truTV, UniMas and HBO Max carrying the broadcast.
- Cleveland recovered from an 0-2 series deficit by scoring 18 runs over Games 3 and 4 in Chicago.
- Gavin Williams threw 18 relief pitches to close Game 4, leaving the Guardians’ pitching assignment unsettled.
- Chicago has rested right-hander Sean Burke available for a major workload after its bullpen was stretched in Game 4.
- José Ramírez has gone 4-for-9 with a double, triple, homer and five RBIs since beginning the series 0-for-6.
- Miguel Vargas has reached base 12 times in the four-game series.
A rivalry that has one last inning to write
The clubs met 13 times during the regular season, and little separated them then, either. Seven of those games were one-run decisions, while four ended on walk-off finishes. Their fight for the division went to the final day, and now the only Division Series still alive has reached its own winner-take-all night.
Both teams have won twice on the other club’s field. Chicago took the opening two games in Cleveland, then the Guardians answered with consecutive wins on the South Side. The winner will head to Tropicana Field for Game 1 of the ALCS on Monday.
“Just on to the next,” White Sox shortstop Colson Montgomery said. “Flush these last two games. It’s out of our control now. All we can control is how we show up on Saturday.”
Cleveland has a chance to complete a rare climb. The last club to lose the first two games of a best-of-five series and still win was the 2017 Yankees, who did it against Cleveland. The Guardians would join the 2001 Yankees, 2012 Giants and 2015 Blue Jays as the only teams to rally from 0-2 in a Division Series after dropping both home games.
For a franchise still chasing its first championship since 1948, there would be no easy route through this one. Steven Kwan said the first two games at Progressive Field left the club feeling it had disappointed its home fans.
“I think momentum’s definitely going be big in this next one,” Kwan said. “We kind of let the home crowd down those first two games. So hopefully it’s another chance at redemption.”
The White Sox also let a home-clinching opportunity get away, missing their first chance to finish a postseason series in Chicago since 1906. Still, this sixth-seeded club has already gone further than many expected, leaning on an unconventional pitching approach and now asking its staff for one more push.
Second baseman Chase Meidroth credited Cleveland’s arms while noting that Chicago created some opportunities in the last two games. “Couldn’t get that big hit,” he said. “But they are a good staff and a great pitching staff. It’s not easy against them ever.”
Pitching plans, lineups and the final bullpen call
Williams remains central to Cleveland’s Game 5 picture, whether he starts or arrives later. The right-hander led the American League with 248 strikeouts during the regular season and punched out 11 White Sox hitters across five innings in Game 2. But he also recorded the final three outs of Game 4, his first professional relief appearance at any level. His only prior bullpen stint came at East Carolina in 2021.
Cleveland had intended to use its first-round bye to give both Williams and Parker Messick two starts in the series. That plan changed when Messick lasted 2 1/3 innings in Game 4, forcing the Guardians to use seven more pitchers. Williams needed 18 pitches to finish the game, and the club entered Friday still sorting through who would open Saturday.
Williams made clear he is prepared for any assignment. “I’m good to go,” he said. “Whatever they need me to do, I’ll do it. If I’ve got to start, I’ll start. If I come out of the bullpen, I’ll come out of the bullpen.”
Burke is the White Sox’ most important available arm. He worked 5 1/3 innings of bulk relief in Game 2, allowing one hit and one run, and went 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA in three regular-season outings against Cleveland, including two starts. Manager Will Venable stopped short of naming him the starter but said Burke would pitch in some capacity.
Chicago’s relief corps has absorbed a heavy load, particularly after Grant Taylor faced six Cleveland hitters in Thursday’s game without recording an out. Taylor said afterward that he would be ready Saturday in any role, even if the assignment became an extended one. Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt likewise indicated there will be no holding back; the Guardians will worry about an ALCS Game 1 pitching plan only if they get there.
Patrick Bailey is expected to return behind the plate for Cleveland after going 2-for-3 with a pinch-hit homer and two RBIs in Game 4. That fifth-inning blast was the Guardians’ first postseason pinch-hit home run since Jhonkensy Noel connected in Game 3 of the 2024 ALCS.
The Guardians may also reconsider left field. Angel Martínez is 0-for-15 with eight strikeouts in the series, with Daniel Schneemann, Petey Halpin and David Fry available as roster alternatives. Brayan Rocchio is 2-for-11 through four games.
Chicago could tilt left-handed if Williams is on the mound. Vargas enters Game 5 after homering off Cade Smith in the ninth inning Thursday and drawing three walks. Munetaka Murakami collected a single and two walks in that game.
Projected Guardians lineup
- Steven Kwan, CF
- José Ramírez, 3B
- Chase DeLauter, RF
- Jo Adell, DH
- Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
- Angel Martínez, LF
- Travis Bazzana, 2B
- Patrick Bailey, C
- Brayan Rocchio, SS
Projected White Sox lineup
- Sam Antonacci, LF
- Kyle Teel, C
- Miguel Vargas, 3B
- Munetaka Murakami, 1B
- Andrew Benintendi, DH
- Tristan Peters, CF
- Chase Meidroth, 2B
- Braden Montgomery, RF
- Colson Montgomery, SS
UniMas will provide the Spanish-language television broadcast, while TUDN Radio will carry Spanish audio. ESPN Radio will have national postseason coverage. By the end of Saturday night, one AL Central club will be finished and the other will be headed to Tampa Bay with very little time to catch its breath.
