Player of the gameSean BurkeCHW5.1ip 1h 1er 1bb 6k
Where were you in 1906? Since anyone born in that magical time would be a robust 120 at this point, clearly nobody was around. But it was that year, on Oct. 14, to be exact, when the White Sox toppled the Cubs at South Side Park to win the World Series in six games. That was the last playoff-clinching victory for the White Sox at home. Until now, it was their only potential playoff clincher at home. But that statistic could be updated Wednesday at Rate Field. Behind a three-run sixth and stellar pitching from Sean Burke against a scrappy Guardians offense, the White Sox claimed a 4-3 victory on Monday at Progressive Field. It was their fourth straight victory to open the 2026 postseason and gave them a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five American League Division Series. In all best-of-five postseason series, teams with a 2-0 lead have gone on to win the series 83 of 93 times (89%). Teams that have won the first two games on the road in Division Series with the current 2-2-1 format have gone on to win the series 17 of 19 times (also 89%). The last time a team rallied from an 0-2 hole in a best-of-five series came in the 2017 ALDS, with the Yankees advancing after dropping the first two games at Cleveland. The last team to rally after losing the first two at home was the 2015 Blue Jays in the ALDS against the Rangers. One victory on Wednesday or Thursday would send the White Sox to the ALCS for the first time since 2005, when they finished 11-1 in the postseason and won the World Series. That championship playoff run opened with a 3-1 stretch before the White Sox rattled off eight straight wins.
