The ALDS between Cleveland and Chicago is going the distance. The Guardians beat the White Sox 9-5 in Game 4 on Thursday, erasing a 2-0 series hole and setting up a winner-take-all Game 5 in Cleveland tonight. The winner gets the Tampa Bay Rays, who swept the Yankees, in the ALCS.
How Cleveland Flipped It
Chicago led 2-0, then 4-3 after the fifth. Then the sixth inning happened. CBS Sports reports that Travis Bazzana’s double and Patrick Bailey’s single started a six-run rally, with José Ramírez, Chase DeLauter and Jo Adell all driving in runs. Adell’s two-run single made it 9-4.
Bailey was the unlikely spark all night. His solo homer in the fifth got Cleveland on the board, and Ramírez followed with a two-run shot off Jordan Hicks. After scoring three runs in the first two games, the Guardians have put up nine in each of the last two.
Game 5 Pitching
Nothing’s locked in. Gavin Williams is the likely Cleveland starter, but he threw 18 pitches in relief in Game 4. “Whatever they need me to do, I’ll do it,” Williams said. Parker Messick, Tanner Bibee and Foster Griffin are all options. Sean Burke is expected to carry the bulk of the innings for Chicago.
IAHHM Take
Momentum is real in October, and right now it’s all Cleveland. The White Sox had this series by the throat and let Game 3 and Game 4 slip with missed chances. Now they have to win in a hostile building with an offense that’s gone cold. Our lean is the Guardians, with Ramírez as the swing factor. If he keeps barreling the ball, Tampa Bay gets a rematch nobody saw coming two days ago.
Source: CBS Sports
