The Chicago White Sox were an absolute disaster in Game 3 of the ALDS against the Guardians and lost the game 9-3. Everything fell apart in the 3rd inning. The White Sox lost both their ABS challenges; the catcher cost them both the challenges, and Chicago lost complete control of the game.
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The game was decided early when Kyle Teel’s failed challenges in the third inning allowed Cleveland to break open a close contest.
“What the f-ck,” Kyle Teel expressed after blowing the White Sox’s 2nd ABS call in the 3rd inning of the ALDS.
Kyle Teel had already helped the White Sox take an early lead with an RBI double. But everything changed when he was behind the plate.
His 2 failed ABS challenges became part of Cleveland’s biggest inning of the night. The Guardians scored 4 runs in the third, turning a 1-1 game into a 4-1 advantage.
From there, the White Sox spent the rest of the night trying to recover from that sudden shift.
The first challenge came after Bryan Hudson replaced Sean Newcomb, who had worked 2 scoreless innings. Travis Bazzana opened the third by drawing a walk, and Teel challenged the ball call.
The challenge failed, leaving the White Sox with only one challenge for the remainder of the game.
Patrick Bailey then stepped up, and Teel wasted another challenge in his at-bat.
That looked even worse because Colson Montgomery made a catch to get Bailey’s out. One aspect may frustrate fans even more.
Teel has been pretty good behind the plate with 54% of challenges won. In the postseason, he had an 88% success rate entering Game 3. To add insult to injury, Kyle Teel has never blown 2 ABS challenges in the same game before.
That left the White Sox without an ABS challenge for the rest of the game.
In a game where the White Sox could have swept the Guardians and made it to their first ALCS since 2005, everything went wrong, breaking their 4-game postseason win streak.
Although this mess didn’t cause any major trouble for the White Sox, that inning cost them everything.
Brayan Rocchio singled before Steven Kwan delivered Cleveland’s first hit with runners in scoring position. Bazzana scored on Kwan’s hit, tying the game before Hagen Smith entered to stop the rally. But Smith loaded the bases after walking José Ramírez, then forced Chase DeLauter into a grounder for 2 outs, but the bases were still loaded.
Then Jo Adell cleared the bases with a triple, putting Cleveland ahead by 4-1.
Chicago tried to answer, but Cleveland kept finding ways to stay ahead.
Chase Meidroth doubled before Tristan Peters followed with another double, cutting Cleveland’s lead to 4-2. José Ramírez restored the 3-run advantage in the fifth after doubling and stealing third. The White Sox created a chance, but nothing came of it.
Teel finished one-for-four with one RBI.
Chicago eventually brought the score within 2 runs during the sixth inning.
Sam Antonacci was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and the White Sox went up to 3. But the Guardians prevented the White Sox from building another rally.
They killed the game in the eighth against David Sandlin by adding 2 more. Ramírez delivered the biggest blow with a 2-run triple.
The Guardians then added 2 more runs in the ninth, turning their advantage into a 9-3 landslide.
By the final inning, the White Sox were watching a game that had slowly moved away from them. Cleveland finished with 11 hits and scored 9 runs after struggling offensively through the first 2 games. Cade Smith closed the night by retiring all six batters he faced.
The White Sox still lead the ALDS 2-1, but Cleveland has now forced Game 4 on Thursday.