CHICAGO – With numerous members of the 2005 World Series champions in attendance, celebrating the retirement of jersey No. 13 for Ozzie Guillen, their manager, it seemed almost impossible for the White Sox to lose Saturday night against the Guardians at Rate Field.
A five-run sixth inning didn’t hurt the cause for the American League Central leaders, who claimed a 6-3 victory and ended a season-high four-game losing streak. The victory increased their division lead back to three games over the Guardians and the Twins in front of the eighth sellout crowd of the season.
Munetaka Murakami started the rally off Gavin Williams with a solo home run down the left-field line, giving him long balls in each of his last two games and 26 for the season. Williams allowed a one-out single to Miguel Vargas before striking out Colson Montgomery and giving way to Colin Holderman.
That move didn’t work for the Guardians. Holderman hit Andrew Benintendi on a 1-2 pitch and hit Braden Montgomery on a 2-2 pitch, loading the bases for Tristan Peters, who doubled to left on a 0-1 sinker to give the White Sox the lead. Chase Meidroth followed with a single to right to raise the margin to 5-2.
The Guardians cut the lead to two in the seventh and had runners on second and third with one out when Sean Newcomb entered the game. Newcomb struck out Chase DeLauter and then retired Angel Martínez on a long fly ball to left-center that Peters tracked down.
Anthony Kay allowed two runs over six innings and struck out four, with the only damage coming on Rhys Hoskins’ two-run home run.