Sam Antonacci ended it with a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth Monday night, sending the Chicago White Sox past the Guardians 6-5 and turning a game Cleveland had briefly taken control of into a finish Chicago could claim in one swing.
The hit capped a rally that began when Braden Montgomery worked a one-out walk off Cade Smith and Tristan Peters followed with a double. Smith then struck out pinch hitter Jacob Gonzalez before Antonacci drove in the winning runs, a sequence that left the White Sox with their sixth walk-off win of the season and a first-place tie with Cleveland in the AL Central.
That mattered because Cleveland had already pushed ahead 5-4 in the top half of the ninth. Rookie Travis Bazzana opened the inning with a walk off Seranthony Domínguez, Patrick Bailey singled to tie the game 4-4, and Kyle Manzardo’s sacrifice fly off Chris Murphy made it 5-4. Chicago answered anyway. Domínguez was charged with his fifth blown save in 17 opportunities.
The loss fit a wider stretch that had been building against Cleveland, which has now dropped 11 of its last 16 games. For Chicago, the finish snapped a three-game losing streak and gave the White Sox a result they needed badly in the standings, even if the night also exposed how thin the margin was. Kyle Teel went 0 for 4 and struck out three times in his first game back since injuring his hamstring while playing for Italy in the World Baseball Classic.
Guardians LHP Parker Messick is scheduled to start Tuesday opposite White Sox RHP Sean Burke. After a game like this, both sides know the next one arrives fast.
