The Cleveland Guardians were rallying against the host Chicago White Sox on Wednesday afternoon at Rate Field, leading 5-2 through five innings of Game 3 of the American League Division Series. Chicago entered the day with a 2-0 series lead and a chance to complete a sweep, but Cleveland has fought back behind a big triple from Jo Adell and a return to form from José Ramírez.
Chicago entered Wednesday with a chance to sweep the series with a win against Cleveland. A victory would send the Chicago White Sox back to the ALCS for the first time in over two decades, after the team returned to Chicago one win away from advancing to the American League Championship Series for the first time in 21 years. Instead, the Guardians have put together their best offensive showing of the series to push the issue deep into the afternoon.
José Ramírez breaks out of his slump
The biggest storyline of the day has been the Cleveland third baseman's bat. José Ramírez, who has been dealing with pain in his left wrist, finally got a hit in the ALDS, a double down the left-field line in the top of the fifth inning. The at-bat mattered beyond the box score: Ramírez had gone hitless through the first two games, and his return to form came at a critical moment for a Cleveland lineup trying to stave off elimination.
Adell's big swing turns the tide
Before Ramírez's breakout at-bat, it was outfielder Jo Adell who flipped the game in Cleveland's favor. After Chicago starter Sean Newcomb was pulled following two scoreless innings, reliever Bryan Hudson walked Travis Bazzana and then allowed singles to Brayan Rocchio and Steven Kwan, the latter of whom drove in a run to tie the game 1-1. The inning snowballed from there. Adell went the opposite way for a bases-clearing triple down the right-field line, making it 4-1 Guardians and quieting the Rate Field crowd.
White Sox chip away but can't catch up
Chicago has not gone quietly. The White Sox trimmed the deficit in the middle innings as Chase Meidroth opened a frame with a leadoff double and later scored on an RBI double, pulling the hosts back within two runs at 4-2. But Cleveland answered again in the fifth, when Ramírez doubled, stole a base and then scored when a fielder's choice throw couldn't get him at the plate in time, pushing the lead to 5-2.
How the White Sox built their 2-0 cushion
Chicago arrived at Game 3 having already weathered a scare in this series. In Monday's Game 2 comeback win in Cleveland, 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 Guardians 4-3 to take control of the series. That victory, detailed in the Game 2 series preview, set up Wednesday's chance to close things out at home.
What comes next
The stakes for Wednesday's result are straightforward. A White Sox win ends the series and sends Chicago to the MLB Playoffs' next round for the first time in 21 years. A Guardians win keeps their season alive and would force the series back to Rate Field for a potential Game 4, since Chicago holds home-field advantage for the remainder of the series.
Where to watch
Game 3 is airing live on TBS and HBO Max, with the broadcast confirming that the Guardians won the American League Central by one game over the White Sox despite losing the season series 7-6 — a reminder that Wednesday's rematch carries extra weight for both AL Central rivals.
A series defined by bullpen chaos
Both clubs have leaned heavily on bullpen games this series rather than traditional starters, a trend that continued Wednesday with Cleveland's Foster Griffin opening and racking up strikeouts before Chicago chipped away against the Guardians' relief corps. That approach has produced tight, error-prone innings in all three games so far, with momentum swinging inning to inning rather than resting on one dominant arm.