The Guardians got the kind of win that can flip a season on its head, and they did it with a first inning that had everything: traffic, contact, chaos, and a White Sox dugout that seemed to lose track of the rules in real time.
Cleveland jumped on Noah Schultz right away. Steven Kwan opened the game with a single, then DeLauter struck out before Jose worked the count full and punched a single up the middle to move Kwan to third.
Adell then got hit by a fastball, loading the bases with one out. Angel Martinez stepped in, took a first-pitch miss, and then lashed the next offering to left for a two-run single.
That put the Guardians in front early, and the inning only got stranger from there.
White Sox manager Will Venable came out to visit Schultz, apparently unaware the pitching coach had already been to the mound earlier in the inning. Under MLB rules, that meant the second visit required a pitching change.
Chicago didn’t even have anyone warm, so the game stalled for about five minutes while they scrambled to get a bulk reliever ready. The White Sox had used seven relievers the night before in a 13-inning game against the Red Sox, so the whole thing had a little bit of everything.
The inning eventually ended when White Sox reliever David Sandlin handled the next Guardians hitters quickly.
Chicago got one back in the bottom of the second when rookie Braden Montgomery homered off Messick, cutting the lead to 2-1. After that, Messick settled in and kept rolling through the middle innings.
By the fifth, Cleveland’s offense went back to work against Sandlin. Kwan grounded out to start the inning, but the next three Guardians reached base on a single, a walk, and a hit-by-pitch.
Martinez came up again and jumped on the first pitch he saw, sending it about 422 feet into the right field seats for a grand slam of momentum if not the official kind. That made it 6-1.
Hoskins followed with a single, Rocchio lined out, and Hedges added an RBI single to bring home Hoskins and push the margin to 7-1.
If the first five innings were strange, the sixth may have been the funniest moment of the night. Kwan was still in there against Sandlin, worked the count to 2-2, fouled off a couple of good pitches, then turned on a curveball right down the middle and sent it off the foul pole in right field. It snapped a 324-at-bat homerless streak and made it 8-1 Guardians.
Messick did allow another solo shot in the bottom of the sixth, this one to Murakami, but that was the end of the damage. He finished with 7 innings, 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 1 walk, and 8 strikeouts. Both runs came on solo homers, and his ERA sat at 2.57 when he was done.
Franco Aleman took over in the eighth and immediately found himself in trouble with a single, a strikeout, another strikeout, and a walk. He was already nearing 20 pitches when Antonacci, pinch-hitting for lefty specialist Randal Grichuk, drove a ball to left that looked dangerous but was caught near the warning track.
Aleman was back out for the ninth and opened with a strikeout and a lineout, but then three straight singles loaded the bases and brought the White Sox’s leadoff man to the plate. At 39 pitches, the pressure was on. Aleman answered by striking him out in five pitches to slam the door.
Aleman’s line ended at 2 innings, 4 hits, 0 earned runs, 1 walk, and 4 strikeouts on 44 pitches. Even after making things harder than they needed to be, he kept Chicago off the board and gave the bullpen a day off.
In Other News...
Guardians Just Lost A Familiar Infielder In A Roster Squeeze
Gabriel Arias has been a familiar part of the Guardians roster conversation since 2022, valued most for his defensive versatility even as his bat never quite found consistent footing. Clevelands decision to move on from him came as the club continued reshaping its roster around younger talent, with the organization creating space for top prospect Angel Genao on the 40-man.
Arias did not stay available for long. Once he hit waivers, another team moved quickly, underscoring how a glove-first infielder with major league experience can still carry appeal even after an uneven run at the plate. For Cleveland, it is another reminder that roster squeezes can turn into quick departures, especially when a prospect push forces a tough choice. [Read more 🡒]
Nathaniel Lowe Is Giving Cleveland Hope At A Position Still In Flux
Clevelands latest skid has only sharpened the attention on first base, where the Guardians are still trying to find something stable after a busy trade deadline and a rough stretch that has included five losses in six games. Nathaniel Lowe arrived from Cincinnati as one of five new players added at the deadline, and early on he has looked like a useful fit, giving the lineup a needed jolt at a spot that has not offered much certainty.
The timing matters because Kyle Manzardo was demoted after his production slipped this season, leaving the Guardians with even more of a long-term question there. Lowes strong start has at least given Cleveland a credible option to lean on while the organization keeps sorting out how it wants to handle the position, especially against right-handed pitching, where the future picture still feels unsettled. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Suddenly Face A Pitching Depth Test Before White Sox Series
The Guardians are heading into their White Sox series with a little less margin on the mound after adding another hit to the pitching depth chart. Cleveland had already been navigating the usual midseason grind, and now it will have to cover innings without one of the arms it had been counting on, turning to its organizational depth for a quick answer.
Franco Aleman is the next man up, back from Triple-A after spending much of the season in relief work. The right-hander has already shown he can miss bats with a fastball that brings real velocity, and his early major league line has been serviceable enough to keep him in the mix. For the Guardians, the immediate question is how long they can piece things together while waiting for the rotation picture to settle. [Read more 🡒]