CLEVELAND — The White Sox are returning to Chicago one win from advancing to the American League Championship Series for the first time in 21 years.
Braden Montgomery lined a two-run double down the right-field line in the sixth inning for the go-ahead runs and Sean Burke allowed one hit in 5 1/3 innings of impressive relief as the White Sox rallied past the Cleveland Guardians 4-3 on Monday to take a 2-0 lead in their AL Division Series.
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Game 3 is Wednesday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field, where the White Sox have two chances to do something they haven't done since 1906 — clinch a postseason series at home.
"They've been waiting 120 years, so maybe we can do it this year," said Grant Taylor, who worked 1 1/3 innings and allowed one hit as he got his second straight save. "I think it's going to be unbelievable. Those fans deserve it. They've been with us for three years of 100 losses and they've been with us a good bit this year giving us a lot of support as we've gone through this. So being able to give them a postseason game is going to be pretty special."
The surprising White Sox improved to 4-0 in these playoffs — all on the road — and are one win from reaching the ALCS for the first time since winning the World Series in 2005. Chicago became the first team to reach the postseason after three straight 100-loss seasons, including a post-1900 record 121 defeats in 2024.
"Our club has been confident the entire year, regardless of the previous result," manager Will Venable said. "They come in ready to play and turn the page. Now, we're really excited to get playoff baseball to our fans."
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Munetaka Murakami hit an RBI single in the fourth to get Chicago within 2-1. Chase Meidroth added an RBI single to extend the lead to 4-2.
Jo Adell hit an RBI triple in the eighth and Chase DeLauter had two hits for the Guardians.
Gavin Williams struck out 11, tied for second-most by a Cleveland pitcher in a postseason game. But the offense failed to produce for the second straight game.
"We have had two-game stretches like this all year and we come right back. I've got a lot of faith in this offense. I have a lot of faith in this team," Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said. "We've got our work cut out for us. Like I said, this team plays its best with its back against the wall."
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3-run sixth propels the White Sox
The White Sox went ahead with a three-run sixth.
Miguel Vargas led off with a base hit to chase Williams and advanced to second on a groundout. Randal Grichuk drew a walk before a wild pitch by losing pitcher Erik Sabrowski with Tommy Pham at the plate advanced the runners to second and third. Pham flied out to shallow left before Montgomery jumped on a first-pitch fastball to drive in the go-ahead runs.
Montgomery celebrated at second base before scoring on Meidroth's single to right.
"I was just ready for something to attack, and I was ready for his hardest stuff. I gave myself my best chance to succeed," Montgomery said. "I can't even describe how it felt. It's exhilarating. I was just taking it all in."
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Burke silences Cleveland's bats
Burke came on with one out in the third. After Travis Bazzana walked with one out in the fourth, the right-hander retired 13 straight batters until DeLauter got a base hit to end Burke's night.
Burke struck out six and threw 83 pitches, including 53 strikes, to earn the win.
"I was able to settle in and find my groove," Burke said. "I've had openers before, but not in this situation, so I talked with a lot of guys. It's just normal baseball when you get into that game."
Taylor entered and allowed an RBI triple to Adell before Nathaniel Lowe flied out to end the eighth.
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Guardians get on the board quickly
After getting shut out Saturday, the Guardians struck quickly with a pair of runs in the first.
Steven Kwan led off with a single and José Ramírez walked before Chase DeLauter's grounder off opener Anthony Kay moved the runners to second and third. Sean Newcomb came on and intentionally walked Adell to load the bases. Lowe hit a high chopper to drive in Kwan, but Newcomb threw it wide of the bag at first, allowing Ramírez to score on the error.
It marked the first time in four games this postseason the White Sox were behind.
Kay faced three batters and threw 17 pitches, including eight strikes.
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Williams strong early
Williams didn't allow a hit until Kyle Teel led off the fourth with a single.
The right-hander allowed two runs and four hits in five-plus innings. He had eight strikeouts in the first three innings and became the first Cleveland pitcher to strike out five straight in a postseason game.
