CHICAGO -- The White Sox had the chance to close out the American League Division Series two different times in front of their frenzied home fans at Rate Field, but they couldn’t get it done. And so, the big question becomes -- what now?
The team already provided one answer: right-hander Sean Burke will start the deciding Game 5 on Saturday at Progressive Field. Burke was excellent in Game 2 after entering in the third, striking out six over 5 1/3 innings while allowing one run on one hit and retiring 13 in a row at one point, and he will get the nod with no opener in front of him.
“Just excited and looking forward to watching him in that environment,” manager Will Venable said Friday. “This is a guy that for me is built for these types of moments, and certainly the stuff that he has and the aggressive way that he pitches and that he'll pitch tomorrow, we're excited to see.”
The surprising White Sox have been a resilient team all year, but their unconventional pitching plans didn’t work in back-to-back games, punctuated by their 9-5 defeat to the Guardians in Game 4 on Thursday night. Chicago used seven pitchers in the loss, including closer Grant Taylor, who was hit hard as part of a six-run sixth inning that put the game away for Cleveland.
They’re going to need Burke to step up as a hero while also drastically cutting down on issuing free passes going forward. They walked 10 batters in Wednesday’s 9-3 loss and seven more while also hitting a batter on Thursday, with three of those runners coming around to score. Burke, however, is a strike thrower, which helps mitigate that.
“I think I did a pretty good job of commanding all my stuff in the zone,” Burke said Friday. “I think that's kind of the key with this team. You see the last couple games how they were able to piece together bigger innings when you're not as sharp with command.”
The Guardians also didn't come away unscathed Thursday, as they had to use Gavin Williams -- who remained an option to start Saturday -- in the ninth to close it out on 18 pitches while their closer, Cade Smith, also threw 31 pitches.
“Small victories there,” Venable said. “It was a small win in making Cade pitch ... two ups and then getting Gavin in the game, as well.”
The White Sox also have the advantage of another off-day on Friday to help reset some of their high-leverage bullpen arms. Just about every pitcher should be available outside of veteran right-hander Erick Fedde, who was one of the bright spots out of the bullpen with 3 2/3 solid innings to keep the White Sox in it. But he threw 61 pitches, which could rule him out of action in the clincher.
He gave up two runs on three hits and a walk with an inherited runner coming around to score in the fifth, when Jordan Hicks served up a two-run blast to José Ramírez after Fedde gave up a single to Steven Kwan.
“He did a great job,” catcher Kyle Teel said. “He attacked the zone. His stuff was really working well for him. I just think we need to stick to our strengths. And on the pitching side, it’s leaning on what you do well.”
Rookie lefty Hagen Smith pitched on consecutive days for the second time in his career and scuffled as the opener, walking three in the opening frame. He threw 27 pitches and has already made three appearances this series, so the White Sox could be hesitant to use him for much more than a short stint.
More concerning is how Taylor fared, as he had been incredibly reliable this postseason, entering the night having thrown 7 2/3 scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts compared to just one walk. He recorded both a four-inning save in Game 1 and a four-out save in Game 2, and it’s fair to wonder if he’s been overexposed against a Guardians team he also faced six times during the regular season, posting a 9.44 ERA in 6 2/3 innings.
But Taylor wasn’t concerned about that after the game, noting that starters face opposing batters multiple times a series, and he believed it was just a lack of execution. He lamented walking two batters, but he insisted that he’ll be ready for the elimination game.
“I’m going to be available for anything,” Taylor said. “If they want me to go nine, then go for it. I’m going to do everything in the next couple of days to be ready to go and put my body on the line.”
It’s almost too perfect that it’ll come down to a Game 5 given how closely these division rivals have played each other throughout the season. Chicago won the season series by a 7-6 margin while outscoring the Guardians by just one run, but now it’ll all be on the line on Saturday night in Cleveland.
“As we've battled back and forth with these guys, obviously fitting that it's going to come down to this,” Venable said. “We just want to win this series however possible, and wherever that is, we'll take it.”