CHICAGO — The Cleveland Guardians kept their season alive with a 9-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field in Game 4 of the American League Division Series on Thursday, but Parker Messick's abbreviated start has complicated the pitching plan for Saturday's winner-take-all Game 5 at Progressive Field.
Messick brought strikeout stuff again, punching out five of his first 10 batters faced much like he did in Cleveland's Game 1 loss, but command failed him. He was removed with one out in the third after a bases-loaded walk to Munetaka Murakami — his fourth walk of the night, which tied a career high — dug the Guardians an early one-run deficit. "Obviously, the script tonight got ripped up in the third," said Guardians manager Stephen Vogt. "When you have to go to the bullpen early, you have to get creative in a win or go home."
Cleveland needed seven relievers to finish the game. All-Star closer Cade Smith inherited a five-run lead to begin the eighth and was tasked with recording the final six outs, but after a scoreless eighth he was pulled in the ninth following a leadoff homer by Miguel Vargas and a walk to Murakami. Gavin Williams, who is lined up to start Game 5, then recorded the final three outs in his first relief appearance at any level as a professional. His previous bullpen experience came in 2021 while in college at East Carolina. Williams threw 18 pitches in high leverage just 48 hours before his scheduled start. "We knew Gavin was available for one," Vogt said. "Obviously, we didn't want to have to do that. But in that [eighth inning] with Colson Montgomery, it was a great [10-pitch] at-bat off Cade, pushing the pitch count up. It was time to go get Gavin."
"With Parker, the command was not sharp tonight," Vogt said. "I think the walks were very uncharacteristic of our pitching staff as a whole. But for Parker, in that moment, we didn't know what [the White Sox] were going to do beyond [Erick] Fedde. ... So it just felt like we needed to stop the game right [there in the third]." Messick will hope for a better ending to a sensational rookie campaign that will earn him strong AL Rookie of the Year consideration and perhaps even some Cy Young love. For a second straight start in the series his pitch count inflated early, which could be a product of fatigue after he racked up 186 1/3 innings during the regular season, by far his largest workload in one season.
The Guardians will likely take an all-hands-on-deck approach to Game 5. While Cleveland went through seven relievers in Game 4, none threw more than 20 pitches outside of Smith, leaving Vogt optimistic about availability. "I don't feel like we've really overextended too many bullpen guys," Vogt said. "Cade is a warrior, and he steps up for these guys every night, and I know he'll be ready to go on Saturday. It's always a concern. You're always concerned with workload this time of year." The critical win was keyed by a vintage "Guards Ball" six-run sixth inning that followed the Guardians' six-run sixth to beat the White Sox 9-5 and force Game 5.