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Guardians Avoid Sweep with 9-3 Win in Game 3
Confirmed
In Short: The Cleveland Guardians avoided a sweep in the American League Division Series with a 9-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox in Game 3.
The Cleveland Guardians managed to avoid a sweep in the American League Division Series with a 9-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox in Game 3, bringing the series to a 2-1 lead for Chicago.
The Guardians' comeback was fueled by a strong pitching performance and a turnaround in hitting, with four players contributing two hits each: Ramírez, Bailey, Adell, and Brayan Rocchio.
Cleveland's pitching was led by Williams, who struck out 11 batters, tying for the second-most ever for a Guardians pitcher in a playoff game.
Despite the Guardians' strong performance, the White Sox still hold a 2-1 series lead and will look to close out the series in Game 4.
The National League saw the Los Angeles Dodgers advance to the Championship Series by eliminating the Atlanta Braves with a 4-1 win in Game 4.
Tyler Glasnow's strong pitching performance for the Dodgers was key in their victory, while the Braves struggled with four errors in their Game 2 loss.
The Yankees and Rays will face off in Game 3 of their series, with the Yankees needing a win to avoid a sweep.
The Brewers and Padres will also play Game 4 of their series, with the Padres looking to advance.
The playoff field is now down to seven teams, with the Astros, Red Sox, Cubs, and Phillies already eliminated in the Wild Card Series.
Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt praised his team's performance, saying, "We continued to pile on."
Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa expressed confidence in his team's ability to continue their strong performance, stating, "We come ready to go like we always do tomorrow."
What this adds
The Guardians' Game 3 victory marks a significant shift in momentum in the series, with Cleveland now having a chance to level the series.
The White Sox's Game 3 loss was marked by 19 strikeouts and poor hitting with runners in scoring position, a stark contrast to their strong performance in the first two games.
Background
The Chicago White Sox extended their lead over the Cleveland Guardians with a 4-3 victory in Game 2 of their American League Division Series.
The Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians will both use openers in Game 3 of their ALDS series.
What's confirmed
- "We come ready to go like we always do tomorrow." Chicago won its first four games in a surprising postseason appearance after going 60-102 last year.
- It was backed by a frenzied crowd of 40,590 for the franchise's first home playoff game since 2021, but there wasn't much for the fans to cheer in the final innings.
What's still developing
- Four League Division Series elimination games are on the schedule in the 2026 MLB playoffs on Wednesday.
- They'll send Max Fried to the mound and try to play a cleaner game after committing four errors in a Game 2 loss on Monday.
- The White Sox, meanwhile, suffered their first loss in the 2026 postseason at home in Game 3 as Cleveland took down their AL Central rivals to stay alive in the ALDS.
- Elsewhere, the Yankees need to win at home to keep their season alive and avoid a sweep against the Rays.
- The White Sox struck out 19 times and went 2-for-11 with runners in position.
- Parker Messick starts for Cleveland in Game 4.
- After a leadoff single by White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas to start the sixth inning, Williams — who threw 99 pitches or more 10 times this season — was pulled at 98 pitches.
- The burly right-hander struck out 11, tied for the second-most ever for a Guardians pitcher in a playoff game behind only Charles Nagy’s 12 strikeouts in the 1996 ALDS, and then watched his lead immediately disappear from the dugout on Monday night.
- Last year, they suffered through a third straight 100-loss season.
- Guardians, White Sox to start openers as Chicago looks to sweep ALDS | ESPN La Crosse 105.5 You are using an outdated browser.
- The White Sox do have familiarity with Cleveland's starters, but the Guardians haven't had trouble striking out the White Sox, which is concerning for the lower seed in this matchup.
- If you go back further to the Detroit series that began on September 18, the White Sox have 73 runs in their last 11 games.
Sources
- CBS Sportslink
- Espnlink
- FOX Sportslink
- CBS Sportslink
- Espnlacrosselink
- Bleacherreportlink
- Chicagotribunelink
- Metsmerizedonlinelink
- WarpBeat — background on White Sox Win Game 2, Extend Lead Over Guardians link
- WarpBeat — background on White Sox, Guardians Set Openers for ALDS Game 3 link
- Locked On Guardians — video link