Guardians Clinch ALDS With Record-Setting Strikeouts
Cleveland pitchers combined for 21 strikeouts, setting a new postseason record in a 2-0 Game 5 victory over the White Sox.
The Cleveland Guardians advanced to the American League Championship Series by defeating the Chicago White Sox 2-0 in Game 5 of their ALDS matchup. Guardians pitchers recorded a nine-inning postseason record 21 strikeouts to secure the comeback victory after trailing two games to none in the series.
Starter Gavin Williams set the tone for Cleveland, striking out 12 of the 21 batters he faced over 5.2 scoreless innings. He allowed just one hit and two walks while hitting one batter. The Guardians' bullpen continued the dominant pitching performance, with Erik Sabrowski, Evan Gaddis, and Cade Smith combining for the final 10 outs, striking out nine batters.
The game's only runs came in the fourth inning when Jose Ramirez hit a two-run home run. The pitch Ramirez hit was reported as the lowest for a postseason home run since at least 2008 and the lowest of his career. Ramirez's performance in the series improved significantly after a statistically down regular season. After going 0-for-6 initially in the series, he finished the final three games 5-for-12 with two home runs, a triple, and a double.
The White Sox, who had the fifth-highest strikeout rate in the regular season, struggled significantly against the Guardians' pitching. Their strikeout rate in Game 5 reached 63.6%, a sharp increase from their regular-season mark of 24.1%.
Cleveland lost the first two games of the series at home but then won three consecutive elimination games to advance. They will now face the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Championship Series, marking their second appearance in that round in three seasons. The Rays recently swept their AL East rival, the New York Yankees.
