CHICAGO – There was a brief moment at the end of a 6-5 walk-off victory for the White Sox over the Guardians on Monday night at Rate Field where it wasn’t a certainty that Chicago had actually won.
Sam Antonacci delivered a two-run single with two outs off Cade Smith, arguably one of the best closers in the game, bringing home Braden Montgomery and Tristan Peters. But the play at the plate on Peters was close thanks to center fielder Daniel Schneemann’s throw – close enough for the Guardians to challenge.
When the call was upheld, most of the 23,151 in attendance went crazy. As for the White Sox players?
They began circling Antonacci near the home dugout and finished surrounding him while euphorically running into left-center field. It unofficially had to be one of the longest White Sox celebrations, distance-wise, on record.
“They covered a lot of ground,” White Sox manager Will Venable said with a smile on his face. “Great for them and those guys are obviously very happy.”
"I saw the coolers. Trying to dodge that,” Antonacci said. “Yeah, they were fun.”
Antonacci’s first-pitch connection became the sixth walk-off hit for the White Sox this season. “Walk off” over the previous three 100-plus-loss seasons usually was what the White Sox did as they piled up defeats.
Three rookies have delivered game-winners, with Antonacci joining Peters and Montgomery, who hit the walk-off homer off Raisel Iglesias in his Major League debut. The last season the White Sox had three rookies with a walk-off hit came in their division-winning run of ‘21, when Nick Madrigal, Yermín Mercedes and Gavin Sheets did the honors.
This rally began with Montgomery’s one-out walk and Peters’ check-swing double rolling perfectly along the third-base line. Of course it rolled perfectly – the White Sox are home, where they have a 25-12 record overall and a 21-4 mark over their last 25.“The game is never over until the last out is recorded,” Peters said. “That’s what we believe in, and we are going to fight every day, every inning.”
“Just jubilation,” said Montgomery of the comeback feeling. “That was really fun to be a part of, a really fun game. Obviously a roller coaster of emotions. That’s baseball.”
In all honesty, the White Sox looked in position to claim a much more comfortable victory in this initial battle of the American League Central’s top two teams. They built up a 3-0 lead behind eight strikeouts over six scoreless innings and a season-high 101 pitches from Anthony Kay, only to have Grant Taylor allow three runs in the seventh.
A broken-bat two-out single from Antonacci scored the first go-ahead run in the seventh, only to have Seranthony Domínguez blow his second straight save and fifth overall. Both hurlers walked the leadoff hitter in their respective part of the ninth inning, leading to very candid postgame comments from Domínguez.
“You can’t walk the first guy. I have to be better than that,” Domínguez said. “How can I tell you? It’s a tough moment for me right now. I couldn’t get a save yesterday. I couldn’t get a save today.
“Fortunately we won today. That’s a great comeback for the guys, and they did a great job. My goal is to get better and try to help the team win.”
Domínguez was part of the Antonacci celebration, saying it felt as if the rookie “took off something from my shoulders.” The victory moved the White Sox (40-37, .519) percentage points ahead of the Guardians (41-38, .518) in a virtual tie for the division’s top spot.
After being swept at Detroit this past weekend, the White Sox still have yet to lose more than three straight. Although their on-field gratification was delayed momentarily, they made up for lost time once the run and victory were confirmed.
“It's going in slow motion. I wouldn't want it to speed up,” Montgomery said. “Standing there on the field, surrounded by all those people, everyone that loves the Sox.
“From the players and staff to everyone filling up the stadium, it was special. Being able to put together an inning like that, against an arm like that in its own right was already great. Waiting for that final verdict was a really cool moment."
Really cool for the White Sox? Yes, for sure. Special? Well, it goes without saying. But also a moment to process if and when October baseball arrives.
“We said in there, that's kind of what a playoff game is going to feel like,” Antonacci said. “Just looking forward to keep putting good days ahead."
“Any time you get to experience that and prepare for that, you feel that much more confident the next time it happens,” Montgomery said. “It was just a fun day at the ballpark.”