CHICAGO -- The Guardians won the American League Central by one game over the White Sox, despite losing the season series, 7-6. That division win earned Cleveland home-field advantage when the two teams met up in the Division Series.

With hard-fought victories from the White Sox on Saturday and Monday at Progressive Field, that home-field advantage quickly disappeared. So, the season is on the line in very different ways for both teams as they return to Rate Field for Game 3 on Wednesday afternoon.

Lose and go home for the offseason for the Guardians.

One win and the White Sox will reach the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2005, when they went on an 11-1 postseason run to claim a World Series title. The White Sox also would finish off their first home playoff clincher since 1906, when they beat the Cubs in six games to win the World Series.

“Road wins are hard to come by in the first place, especially coming in and taking two of them,” said White Sox closer Grant Taylor, who saved both victories over the Guardians, including one of the four-inning variety. “Being able to go into [Rate Field] with a possibility of winning the series on Wednesday, it’s going to be a lot of fun. Being able to grab two wins is huge for the rest of the series and the rest of the postseason.”

If there’s one potential consolation for the Guardians, it's that they played better on the road (44-37) than at Progressive Field (41-40) in the regular season.

“We've had a ton of adversity throughout this year,” outfielder Steven Kwan said. “We had a ton of adversity last year as well. There's no panic button. We're not trying to do too much. We have the off-day [Tuesday]. We can get acclimated to the city, the stadium. We just have to go into it with a ton of focus.”

When is the game and how can I tune in?

First pitch for Game 3 of the White Sox-Guardians ALDS is set for 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT on Wednesday at Rate Field. The game will be broadcast on TBS, truTV and HBO Max.

The ALDS will be available in Spanish on UniMas, while Univision’s TUDN Radio will provide Spanish-language audio coverage. ESPN Radio will provide live national coverage of all 2026 MLB Postseason games.

Who are the starting pitchers?

Guardians: RHP Daniel Espino

Key stats: Over three outings in September behind opener Daniel Espino, Joey Cantillo allowed four hits and four walks with 17 strikeouts over 15 scoreless innings.

Espino will serve as an opener in Game 3. That's as much as we know heading in. Cantillo was effective working in relief behind Espino in September, but the Guardians also have starters Tanner Bibee and Foster Griffin available. In any case, Cleveland can give Chicago multiple looks out of the gate. The off-day should have manager Stephen Vogt's bullpen well-rested.

White Sox: LHP Sean Newcomb

Key stats: Newcomb has a 2.61 ERA over nine games against the Guardians this season after appearing in a 4-3 victory on Monday.

Newcomb was made official during Tuesday’s workout day, but it will be pretty much all arms available as the White Sox try to lock down the Division Series. That list could include pitchers such as Davis Martin and Noah Schultz, who haven’t pitched all in the postseason, or hurlers such as David Sandlin and Erick Fedde, who have each made one appearance.

What do the starting lineups look like?

Guardians: It will be interesting to see if Vogt shakes anything up in Game 3 to try to spark something offensively. For now, we’ll keep things static to Game 2. While Newcomb is a lefty, the fact that his start could be abbreviated sheds little light on the Guardians' preference for Wednesday's starting catcher, Austin Hedges or Patrick Bailey. David Fry could draw a start at first base with the White Sox plotting a left-hander to cover multiple innings, but Cleveland could start Lowe to save Fry as a pinch-hitter for a high-leverage spot late.

1. Steven Kwan, CF
2. José Ramírez, 3B
3. Chase DeLauter, RF
4. Jo Adell, DH
5. Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
6. Angel Martínez, LF
7. Travis Bazzana, 2B
8. Patrick Bailey, C
9. Brayan Rocchio, SS

White Sox: This lineup would go against a right-handed starter. It would be adjusted if a southpaw was on the mound, as the White Sox did Saturday against Parker Messick.

1. Sam Antonacci, LF
2. Kyle Teel, C
3. Miguel Vargas, 3B
4. Munetaka Murakami, 1B
5. Andrew Benintendi, DH
6. Chase Meidroth, 2B
7. Tristan Peters, CF
8. Braden Montgomery, RF
9. Colson Montgomery, SS

How will the bullpens line up after the starter?

Guardians: Between having another off-day on Tuesday and the Guardians facing elimination, it should be all hands on deck for Vogt in Game 3. That includes Erik Sabrowski, Hunter Gaddis, Shawn Armstrong and Cade Smith being available after pitching in Game 2.

White Sox: Taylor had an off-day to recover from another stellar outing Monday, but that outing only covered seven pitches. So he should be ready to finish things off on Wednesday. Manager Will Venable will have anyone and everyone available to push his team to the ALCS, if the chance is there.

“We've seen a lot of contributions from plenty of guys on both sides of the baseball,” Taylor said. “You're seeing some guys who traditionally have been starters throwing two innings, one out. You know, whatever it may be.

“Everyone down there is ready to do what's necessary for the team. The past four games, we've been pretty good at it.”

Any injuries of note?

Guardians: None.

White Sox: None.

Who is hot and who is not?

Guardians: The Guardians’ offense has scored just three runs on seven hits and eight walks this series. Martínez is 0-for-8, Ramírez is 0-for-6 with two walks, and Adell, Bazzana and Kwan each have one hit in this series. Smith has thrown a pair of 1-2-3 innings.

White Sox: Miguel Vargas produced his usual top-notch plate appearances in Monday’s 4-3 victory over the Guardians, walking twice and singling to left against overpowering Gavin Williams. Don’t overlook Murakami, who homered in Game 1 and singled home the first run in Game 2. And, of course, it was Braden Montgomery who delivered Monday’s game-winning hit with a two-run double to right.

“He's very committed to his process,” said Venable of Braden. “He works extremely hard on both sides of the plate, gives himself chances, you know? Throughout the season, specifically on the right side, it's been a little bit more of a struggle for him, but he's continued to put in execution. Had a huge swing right there.”

Anything else fans might want to know?

  • When Cleveland scored two runs in the first Monday, the White Sox trailed for the first time in the ‘26 postseason.
  • The White Sox will bring back their Blackout fans theme for Wednesday’s contest.
  • Adell’s triple in the eighth inning of Game 2 marked his first career postseason hit and RBI.