CLEVELAND -- Gavin Williams electrified Progressive Field through the first five innings of Game 2 of the AL Division Series Monday night, striking out 11 White Sox hitters to become only the third Cleveland pitcher to rack up double-digit punchouts in a postseason game.
This should have been the main storyline for the Guardians. Instead, what transpired after his exit in the sixth with a one-run lead in what ended up a 4-3 loss to Chicago is what fans in Cleveland will remember, especially if the Guardians -- now down 0-2 in this best-of-five series -- are unable to pull off a comeback.
Entering the sixth inning with a 2-1 lead, Williams surrendered a leadoff single to Miguel Vargas. With rookie sensation Munetaka Murakami coming up and Williams sitting at 98 pitches, manager Stephen Vogt opted for the bullpen, summoning left-hander Erik Sabrowski.
Five batters later, the one-run lead flipped to a two-run deficit. Sabrowski recorded two outs but was pulled in that same sixth after a go-ahead two-run double by Braden Montgomery and replaced by right-hander Hunter Gaddis, who immediately gave up an RBI single to Chase Meidroth.
When a decision like this goes awry, the second-guessing for a manager always follows. It was no different postgame Monday with Vogt, who was asked why he pulled Williams -- whose four hits allowed were all singles -- in that situation.
“If he has to face two more hitters, now you’re running him up to 110, 115 [pitches],” Vogt said. “It was the right time to get him out of there. He pitched his backside off. Just unfortunate we were not able to get the result.”
These decisions are never easy for a manager. Let’s break down both sides of it:
Case for the bullpen
It’s hard to debate putting trust in Cleveland’s relief corps. The combined 3.52 ERA posted by the Guardians’ bullpen was the third-lowest mark in the AL during the regular season, trailing only the Yankees (3.13) and Red Sox (3.00). This was a large part of why Cleveland was 59-8 (.881) in the regular season in games it led through five innings, the sixth-best record in MLB.
Sabrowski was a big part of that bullpen success down the stretch, having allowed just four hits and one run in 17 innings over his last 19 regular-season appearances dating back to Aug. 8.
As Sabrowski put it Monday night, though, he just “didn’t have it” on the mound, issuing a four-pitch walk to pinch-hitter Randal Grichuk with one out and later firing a wild pitch to set up runners at second and third.
“Just lack of control,” Sabrowski said. “It’s unfortunate. It was a pretty big part of the game, and I let a lot of guys down.”
Case for Williams
Williams has proven to be a horse for the Guardians over the past two years, and the 6-foot-6, 250-pound right-hander was well-rested after not having pitched since Sept. 25.
The regular-season numbers also suggest that sticking with Williams a bit longer might have worked out. When facing hitters a third time through the order, Williams held opposing batters to a .201 average with a .654 OPS.
On Monday, Williams had struck out five of the previous seven batters before Vargas’ leadoff single. While his velocity had dropped slightly from the triple digits he was hitting in the early innings, he still fired several pitches above 98 mph in the fifth, suggesting he had enough left in the tank.
Williams finished one strikeout shy of a franchise record set by Charles Nagy (12) in Game 4 of the 1996 ALDS, and joined Bartolo Colon (11 in Game 1 of the 1999 ALDS; 10 in Game 1 of the 2001 ALDS) in hitting the mark. He struck out five consecutive batters from the end of the first to the beginning of the third, becoming the first Cleveland pitcher to log such a streak in the postseason. He also threw 18 pitches at 100 mph or faster, tying Emmanuel Clase (Sept. 18, 2021) for the most by a Cleveland pitcher in the regular season or postseason (since 2008).
“Yeah, that’s cool,” Williams said of making history. “I don’t think I was too worried about the strikeouts. I was just trying to put the team in a good position to win.”
Those impressive feats by Williams took a backseat to the Guardians being pushed to the brink of elimination in his absence. Their backs are now against the wall, so expect all hands on deck for Game 3 on Wednesday at Rate Field, with even Williams pushing to make himself available on short rest.
“I can go out of the bullpen in Game 3 if I have to,” Williams said. “I’m just trying to help the team win at this point.”