White Sox Rally Past Guardians for 2-0 ALDS Series Lead

The White Sox are one win away from the American League Championship Series after another comeback victory, beating the Guardians 4-3 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in the ALDS. For a club that has made a habit of late-game resilience, this was another example of Chicago refusing to let an early deficit define the night.

Chicago had already opened the series with a 2-0 win on Saturday, a game sealed by a string of relievers and a dominant four-inning finish from Grant Taylor. Munetaka Murakami supplied the key swing in that opener with a 440-foot home run in the fourth inning, while Cleveland wasted several opportunities by leaving seven runners on base and going hitless in four chances with runners in scoring position.

Game 2 began in a much different way. Cleveland grabbed a 2-0 lead after Sean Newcomb, who entered in place of starter Anthony Kay, made a throwing error on a ground ball from Nathaniel Lowe. With the Guardians in front early, it looked as if the series might quickly shift in a different direction.

Murakami, however, continued to be one of the defining players in this matchup. In the fourth inning, Kyle Teel singled and Miguel Vargas worked a walk before Murakami sent a ground ball through the right side to bring home Teel. That cut the deficit to 2-1 and gave Chicago needed momentum.

The decisive turn came in the sixth. Vargas opened the inning with a single, and after Murakami made an out, Randal Grichuk drew a walk. A wild pitch from Erik Sabrowski moved both runners into scoring position, though Tommy Pham's flyout failed to bring home the tying run. Braden Montgomery changed that immediately. On the first pitch he saw, the rookie lined a double to right field, scoring both runners and pushing the White Sox in front 3-2.

Chicago was not done. With Hunter Gaddis entering for Cleveland, Chase Meidroth followed with a bloop single to right that scored Montgomery and stretched the lead to 4-2. What had been a tense, low-scoring game suddenly tilted toward the White Sox because of another burst of timely hitting from a lineup that has delivered all season.

The Guardians threatened again in the eighth. Chase DeLauter singled with two outs against bulk pitcher Sean Burke, prompting manager Will Venable to turn back to Taylor only two days after his 42-pitch outing in Game 1. Cleveland nearly made Chicago pay when Jo Adell drove a 413-foot triple off the top of the wall in left-center, cutting the margin to 4-3. Taylor settled down, retired Lowe, and kept the White Sox in front.

He then finished the game himself in the ninth, needing only five pitches to retire Angel Martinez, Travis Bazzana, and Patrick Bailey in order. Across two appearances in three days, Taylor has covered 5.1 innings on 49 pitches, giving Chicago exactly the kind of bullpen anchor every postseason team needs.

Chicago closes in on a stunning next step

The series now shifts to the South Side on Wednesday, with neither team yet announcing a starter. The White Sox remain unbeaten in the playoffs and are now in firm control of the matchup, while Cleveland must win three straight to keep its season alive.

What makes Chicago's run stand out is how quickly the franchise has changed its outlook. Just two years after a 121-loss season, the White Sox have surged back through sharp roster moves, including the 2024 trade that brought Vargas from the Dodgers, plus strong internal development. Murakami's standout first season and the emergence of players such as Montgomery, Colson Montgomery, Meidroth, Taylor, and Teel helped Chicago score the most runs in the American League in 2026. Now that growth has the White Sox on the verge of an unlikely trip to the ALCS.