The Cleveland Guardians are going to the ALCS. Gavin Williams tied a franchise playoff record with 12 strikeouts and José RamÃrez hit a go-ahead two-run homer as Cleveland beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0 in a winner-take-all Game 5 on Saturday night, completing a historic comeback from 2-0 down in the American League Division Series.
Williams Dominates, Ties Nagy's Playoff Record
Gavin Williams was untouchable. The Guardians ace struck out 12 over 5⅔ shutout innings, allowing just one hit and two walks on 94 pitches — tying Charles Nagy's franchise single-game playoff strikeout record, set in Game 4 of the 1996 ALDS against Baltimore. Williams, who led the AL with 248 strikeouts in the regular season, averaged over 99 mph on his fastball and exited to a standing ovation at Progressive Field.
Chicago finally broke through with its first hit in the sixth and loaded the bases, chasing Williams — but Erik Sabrowski came on and struck out Munetaka Murakami to escape the jam. Closer Cade Smith then struck out the side in the ninth (Murakami, Andrew Benintendi and Tristan Peters, all swinging) to seal it.
RamÃrez's Golf-Shot Homer Makes History
The game's only runs came in the fourth, when Steven Kwan singled and José RamÃrez golfed a pitch that was just 0.89 feet off the ground over the right-field wall for a two-run homer — the lowest pitch RamÃrez has ever homered on in his career, and the lowest pitch anyone has hit for a postseason home run in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008), per ESPN.
It was RamÃrez's second straight game with a home run and continued a torrid stretch: since the start of Game 3, his OPS for the series is 1.224. "It was José RamÃrez being José RamÃrez in the playoffs," manager Stephen Vogt said after Game 4.
First 2-0 Comeback in a Best-of-Five Since 2017
The White Sox won the first two games in Cleveland and looked in complete control — teams taking a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five had won 83 of 93 times. But the Guardians stormed back with 9-3 and 9-5 wins in Chicago, then closed it out at home to become the first club to rally from 2-0 in a best-of-five since the 2017 Yankees — who did it against Cleveland.
"What this team is doing is only what we know how to do," RamÃrez said. "This team has answered all year," Vogt added. "We talk about it — we punch back."
Chicago's stunning season ends in heartbreak: the White Sox, who swept Houston in the wild-card round, missed a second straight chance to clinch a postseason series at home and reach their first ALCS since 2005.
What's Next: Rays Await in the ALCS
Cleveland now heads to Florida to face the Tampa Bay Rays, who swept the Yankees and own the AL's best record at 101 wins. Game 1 of the ALCS is Monday, October 12, at Tampa Bay. The Guardians will need their battered pitching staff to recover quickly — but with Williams dealing and RamÃrez swinging like this, they are a dangerous underdog.
Watch: ESPN on José RamÃrez heating up for ALDS Game 5 — he was the difference maker
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Ready Aim Fire (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0
Sources: Akron Beacon Journal, ESPN, Reuters