Although it hasn’t been pleasant, the Cleveland Guardians are managing to win games, even if it means hurting the struggling Chicago White Sox.
The Guardians will try to sweep the three-game home series and give the White Sox an eighth straight defeat on Thursday afternoon after winning by one run for the second time in a row.
The season began with the defending American League Central champion Guardians losing six of nine games, all away from home. Then, in Tuesday’s home opener at Cleveland, they defeated Chicago 1-0, requiring a walk-off walk in the ninth inning.
Mike Tauchman re-injured his right hamstring rounding third base and was tagged out before reaching home, ending the Guardians’ 3-2 victory. “We’re going to get it rolling,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said. “We know that there are some things we need to improve on.” On Wednesday, the Guardians led 3-1 in the ninth inning with star closer Emmanuel Clase on the mound, but he loaded the bases and Miguel Vargas of Chicago delivered what appeared to be a game-tying, two-out, two-run single.
Over the last two days, Cleveland starts Ben Lively and Logan Allen combined to give up six hits and one unearned run in 9 2/3 innings. In his two 2025 starts, Gavin Williams (0-0, 4.50 ERA), the Guardians’ scheduled starter Thursday, has allowed nine hits and six runs (four earned) in eight innings.
Additionally, the right-hander expects to do better than in his lone prior appearance against the White Sox. He lost 8-2 at home on July 3, 2024, after giving up five runs and seven hits in four innings.
In that game, Lenyn Sosa of Chicago went one for two with a double against Williams. Despite only hitting.194 in his first 10 games this season, Sosa recorded his first RBI since Opening Day on Wednesday with a run-scoring single.
Although they are hitting, the White Sox have split their first four games. They scored 15 runs during their seven-game losing streak, hitting 198 with a.534 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. On Wednesday, they stranded eleven runners despite having eight hits.
“It’s unfortunate,” Will Venable, the first-year manager of Chicago, said of the Wednesday outcome. “I’m sorry about Mike’s (Tauchman’s) fate in the last play. I’m rather proud of the work we’ve been doing, even though we fought the entire game.”
The White Sox are also coping with a number of injuries. In the most recent loss, Korey Lee injured his left ankle in addition to Tauchman’s injury. And that followed Andrew Benintendi’s pregame placement on the 10-day injured list due to a strained left adductor.
Jonathan Cannon will start for the White Sox on Thursday (0-1, 3.12 ERA). The right-hander gave up three runs, three hits, three walks, and two hit batters in 3 2/3 innings during Friday’s 7-4 loss at Detroit after allowing four hits over five scoreless innings in a no-decision game against the Los Angeles Angels on March 29.
Last season, Cannon made one appearance against the Guardians as a rookie, giving up three runs in 5 1/3 innings in a 5-0 home defeat on September 10.
