5 Keys to Guardians Winning ALDS Against White Sox

The Guardians face off against the White Sox with the ALCS on the line.

Sep 22, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Parker Messick (77) throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox in the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The marathon of an MLB regular season is over, and the Cleveland Guardians will begin their sprint to the World Series against the Chicago White Sox.

They will have home-field advantage in the short five-game series, and the White Sox stand in the way of an ALCS berth.

To come away with a series win, the Guardians need to focus on what they do best to advance. 

Innings for the Starters

The rotation is top-heavy with Parker Messick and Gavin Williams, and they will start games one and two, respectively.

They have to get twice through the lineup with limited damage. The White Sox jumped on the Houston Astros' starters early and knocked them out of the game. The Guardians cannot afford to get down early and rely on middle relief to hold down the fort until the back end of the bullpen. 

Ducks on the Pond

Runners on base will cause havoc on the White Sox pitchers. They are young and inexperienced and lack a true shutdown pitcher. The Guardians need to get runners on and apply pressure to the pitching staff to get them to make a mistake.

The Guardians need to be able to get on and take the extra base when possible. The offense can benefit from steals and creating traffic, resulting in the White Sox having to go to their middle relievers early.  

Limit the Long Ball

The White Sox rely on hitting the ball out of the park. They were fifth in all of baseball at rounding the bases and the Guardians have to keep the ball in play to win the series.

Home runs can lead to big innings and the Guardians have shown in the past that they cannot keep up in a series where they are being out-homered. 

The Kids

The lineup is littered with rookies, and they are going to need to produce for the Guardians to move on.

Chase DeLauter bats behind a red-hot Stephen Kwan and Jose Ramirez. He will have many at-bats with runners on, and he has to find a way to keep advancing them and get them home. Travis Bazzana will bat in the middle of the order and will need to be able to put the bat on the ball with runners on. 

Rockin’ Progressive

The Guardians have home-field advantage and the fans always show up and get loud for playoff games. The White Sox did not play in a raucous environment in the Wild Card round, and their roster is very inexperienced.

The pressure applied by the fans will be key to holding home field and advancing. The White Sox will use their ballpark to their advantage as they were 15 games over .500 in Chicago this season. 

The Guardians cannot take the White Sox for granted and need to play clean baseball in order to beat the division rivals.