WEBVTT - Sox Machine Live: ALDS Game 4 Postgame 0:00:00.350 --> 0:00:03.790 Howard, my dad was T-boned by a utility vehicle and 0:00:04.050 --> 0:00:06.940 is in surgery now. What should I do? 0:00:07.320 --> 0:00:09.820 I'm sorry to hear about that. It's really great that 0:00:09.860 --> 0:00:11.700 you're getting him the medical care and treatment that he 0:00:11.740 --> 0:00:14.480 needs right now. These are three important things that I 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:17.239 think you need to know. Injuries are unexpected and turn 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:20.480 lives upside down. I'm Howard Ankin, and I'm here to help. 0:00:20.960 --> 0:00:22.640 If you or a loved one have been hurt at work, 0:00:22.900 --> 0:00:26.739 or in a car, truck, or ride share accident, call 312-6-MILLION. 0:00:27.080 --> 0:00:29.380 Injury law made personal. That's Ankin Law. 0:00:43.479 --> 0:00:48.960 From your favorite source for Chicago White Sox talk, delivering news, interviews, analysis, 0:00:49.120 --> 0:00:52.980 and more, this is the Sox Machine Podcast with your hosts, 0:00:53.180 --> 0:00:55.640 Jim Margulis and Josh Nelson. Hello, folks. 0:00:55.720 --> 0:00:58.520 Welcome to the Sox Machine postgame show for the American 0:00:58.540 --> 0:01:01.200 League Division Series Game 4 as we are streaming live 0:01:01.580 --> 0:01:04.660 from the Rimoba Theater in Chicago. Of course, this episode 0:01:04.700 --> 0:01:09.520 presented by Fowl Territory and... I'm your host, Josh Nelson, 0:01:09.530 --> 0:01:12.340 and I wish I had better news. But once again, 0:01:12.400 --> 0:01:14.959 the Cleveland Guardians just figure out a way in the 0:01:15.020 --> 0:01:17.790 second half of these games at rate field. And they 0:01:17.810 --> 0:01:21.009 put up another nine spot on the Chicago White Sox, 0:01:21.069 --> 0:01:24.810 winning game four, nine to five. So now game five, 0:01:25.020 --> 0:01:29.700 what we feared could be necessary is now necessary as 0:01:29.740 --> 0:01:33.800 the series will be heading back to Cleveland for Saturday night, 0:01:33.880 --> 0:01:38.460 October 10th, as the Cleveland Guardians trying to do what 0:01:38.520 --> 0:01:41.539 happened to them back in 2017. They had a 2-0 0:01:41.740 --> 0:01:43.740 lead on the Yankees and the Yankees ended up winning 0:01:43.780 --> 0:01:47.179 three straight games there. against Cleveland to move on to 0:01:47.220 --> 0:01:50.890 the championship series. And Cleveland now is trying to accomplish 0:01:50.940 --> 0:01:55.070 what the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays did, which was losing 0:01:55.090 --> 0:01:57.490 the first two games of the division series at home. 0:01:57.890 --> 0:02:00.550 And they ended up winning three straight against the Texas 0:02:00.590 --> 0:02:04.590 Rangers to go to the championship series. As we take 0:02:04.610 --> 0:02:07.510 a look at the box score for the Chicago White Sox, 0:02:08.090 --> 0:02:12.690 as again, too many base runners and managing editor Jim 0:02:12.730 --> 0:02:16.799 Margulis will be joining me in a moment here. Just 0:02:17.260 --> 0:02:21.100 a really ugly box score. The first four innings felt 0:02:21.120 --> 0:02:23.920 like a completely different game than what we saw in 0:02:23.940 --> 0:02:27.600 the final five. And really the Guardians did to the 0:02:27.650 --> 0:02:29.410 White Sox what the White Sox have done to a 0:02:29.450 --> 0:02:32.549 lot of teams in 2026. When you take a look 0:02:32.570 --> 0:02:35.510 at the fifth and sixth inning, that transition from the 0:02:35.570 --> 0:02:37.889 original game plan on the pitching side for the White 0:02:37.930 --> 0:02:41.560 Sox from Eric Fetty into the bullpen, Cleveland was ready. 0:02:42.010 --> 0:02:45.750 They ended up scoring nine runs And a majority of 0:02:45.790 --> 0:02:52.139 those runs are on the record for Grant Taylor. And unfortunately, 0:02:52.180 --> 0:02:55.240 Jordan Hicks allowed a big home run to Jose Ramirez, 0:02:55.300 --> 0:02:59.790 a two-run shot to give Cleveland a 3-2 lead. And 0:02:59.810 --> 0:03:03.109 it's just a really sour taste in the mouth for 0:03:03.410 --> 0:03:06.470 the Chicago White Sox, especially on the pitching side, as 0:03:06.510 --> 0:03:09.940 we take a look at the game recap. And What 0:03:10.120 --> 0:03:13.859 is very striking, and just like in Game 3, in 0:03:13.900 --> 0:03:17.560 which when the White Sox allowed 21 base runners, and 0:03:17.860 --> 0:03:24.060 the White Sox pitchers only had 6 strikeouts, in Game 4, 0:03:24.060 --> 0:03:28.450 they allowed 17 base runners, 10 hits allowed, 7 walks, 0:03:28.450 --> 0:03:35.090 3 strikeouts. Only 3 strikeouts today from White Sox pitchers. 0:03:35.910 --> 0:03:40.860 And it's a lot of batted balls and just... Man, 0:03:41.200 --> 0:03:44.780 I don't know if it's so much if the White 0:03:44.800 --> 0:03:47.240 Sox pitching is out of gas or if they were 0:03:47.340 --> 0:03:52.530 just bad these last two games. And there's a strobe 0:03:52.810 --> 0:03:58.250 show going behind me. It's really difficult to comprehend what 0:03:58.290 --> 0:04:01.370 we saw at rate field these last two nights because 0:04:01.430 --> 0:04:05.350 the first four games of this postseason, the White Sox 0:04:05.390 --> 0:04:09.240 run prevention was on point. They had only allowed nine 0:04:09.310 --> 0:04:13.500 runs In their first four games. They made Cleveland's offense 0:04:13.540 --> 0:04:16.420 look really bad. The first two games of the series. 0:04:17.020 --> 0:04:21.479 And then Cleveland comes to Chicago. And just a butt whooping. 0:04:21.500 --> 0:04:24.180 I mean back to back games. In which the White 0:04:24.220 --> 0:04:27.560 Sox allowed nine runs. I feel bad. I mean this. 0:04:28.240 --> 0:04:32.540 Romova was packed. The stadium was packed. Excited. People spent 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:34.880 a lot of money to go to these games. And 0:04:35.440 --> 0:04:38.440 just to watch things completely collapse. On the Chicago White Sox. 0:04:38.480 --> 0:04:41.089 Is a really bad taste in the mouth. for the 0:04:41.130 --> 0:04:43.450 team and the organization. And now they have to lick 0:04:43.470 --> 0:04:48.169 their wounds and get ready for game five. So in 0:04:48.190 --> 0:04:50.910 this post game show, we'll talk about the pitching disaster 0:04:50.950 --> 0:04:53.800 for the Chicago White Sox. We're going to try to 0:04:53.820 --> 0:04:57.160 bring up some positives as well. Offensively, the White Sox 0:04:57.200 --> 0:05:01.320 did put up five runs tonight. They showed quite a 0:05:01.339 --> 0:05:04.179 bit of fight as well, multiple times in this game. 0:05:06.320 --> 0:05:11.310 And Now, Sox machines manager Jim Margulis joins me for 0:05:11.330 --> 0:05:15.229 this post-game show. Jim, I was going to highlight some 0:05:15.250 --> 0:05:17.150 of the positives I wanted to talk about later in 0:05:17.190 --> 0:05:21.880 this post-game show. I thought the White Sox multiple times 0:05:21.920 --> 0:05:26.120 today offensively put up good rallies, especially in the first 0:05:26.160 --> 0:05:31.960 half of this game. But ultimately, this game and what 0:05:31.980 --> 0:05:34.690 everyone's going to be talking about Friday and leading up 0:05:34.710 --> 0:05:38.200 to the first pitch on Saturday... is just the pitching. 0:05:38.260 --> 0:05:42.690 The pitching was really bad the last two games. And, 0:05:43.170 --> 0:05:46.410 you know, we have some comments in the YouTube and 0:05:46.589 --> 0:05:48.490 some people are a lot of White Sox fans, even 0:05:48.510 --> 0:05:51.109 on social media are saying, well, the White Sox pitching 0:05:51.130 --> 0:05:54.250 staff's out of gas. I just think they've been ass, honestly, 0:05:54.330 --> 0:05:58.420 the last two games, 38 base runners allowed the last 0:05:58.480 --> 0:06:03.979 two games. And only nine strikeouts like Ryan Bannister, Zach Bove, 0:06:04.000 --> 0:06:07.310 the entire pitching infrastructure needs to put their heads together 0:06:07.410 --> 0:06:11.770 tonight and going into tomorrow to figure out exactly what 0:06:11.810 --> 0:06:15.150 you're going to do moving forward. But maybe Jim, there 0:06:15.300 --> 0:06:18.679 is a silver lining. Game five is really simple. Maybe 0:06:18.740 --> 0:06:21.200 just go with the Sean Newcomb and Sean Burke and 0:06:21.279 --> 0:06:24.740 see how far that takes you in game five. But 0:06:24.940 --> 0:06:27.120 I just want to get your reaction of what we 0:06:27.180 --> 0:06:30.530 saw tonight in the White Sox losing game four and 0:06:30.550 --> 0:06:32.110 the overall pitching effort. 0:06:34.490 --> 0:06:37.710 I think on the whole, it's fair to say that 0:06:37.770 --> 0:06:42.990 the pitching is running on fumes. Just it's a long season, like, yeah, 0:06:43.170 --> 0:06:47.089 especially like Grant Taylor and He looks, you know, like 0:06:47.390 --> 0:06:51.730 after that four inning save. He avoided disaster in game two. 0:06:51.990 --> 0:06:53.910 There are signs of that. And we talked about how 0:06:53.930 --> 0:06:57.650 Will Venable kind of got away with it. And now 0:06:57.690 --> 0:06:59.070 we're seeing what it looks like when he doesn't get 0:06:59.110 --> 0:07:03.210 away with it. Taylor, you know, between walking two guys 0:07:03.290 --> 0:07:06.770 on nine pitches combined and then giving up singles that 0:07:06.790 --> 0:07:09.310 were not well hit, but they didn't have to be 0:07:09.360 --> 0:07:11.310 well hit. It just, you know, I likened it in 0:07:11.330 --> 0:07:14.320 the recap to softball swings, just kind of poking the 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:17.179 ball where it needed to go based on where defenders weren't. 0:07:18.130 --> 0:07:21.580 comfortable swings, not looking overmatched. So like I would say 0:07:21.620 --> 0:07:26.100 on an individual level, Taylor looks like he's not what 0:07:26.120 --> 0:07:27.960 you want at the end of the game. And you 0:07:27.980 --> 0:07:30.340 could say the same thing about like Hagen Smith being 0:07:30.460 --> 0:07:33.070 used in a way that he hasn't been used and 0:07:33.130 --> 0:07:35.390 the way the controls get away from him, like you 0:07:35.410 --> 0:07:37.670 can maybe cut him a little bit of slack. But 0:07:37.690 --> 0:07:40.210 like Jordan Hicks giving up a homer to Jose Ramirez. 0:07:41.500 --> 0:07:44.710 He's fresh. You know, that shouldn't have happened. That was 0:07:44.790 --> 0:07:48.490 Ramirez beating Hicks. So, like, I wouldn't say that Hicks was, 0:07:48.510 --> 0:07:51.270 you know, just at the end of his line. He 0:07:51.310 --> 0:07:56.430 just failed in that particular instance. Anthony Kaye, not really. 0:07:56.450 --> 0:07:59.040 You know, this relief work doesn't really seem to be 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:01.700 suited for him, but he should be able to get 0:08:01.720 --> 0:08:03.820 an inning of work in. Like Eric Fetty, like he 0:08:04.360 --> 0:08:07.580 did kind of a median Fetty job tonight. And I 0:08:07.620 --> 0:08:08.840 think that's kind of more or less what you could 0:08:08.880 --> 0:08:11.550 expect from him in a postseason game. But he wasn't 0:08:11.590 --> 0:08:14.150 set up well with Hagan Smith not being able to 0:08:14.170 --> 0:08:16.730 get out of the first inning. And then on the 0:08:16.810 --> 0:08:20.500 back side of it was going from him to Hicks 0:08:20.510 --> 0:08:23.320 giving up the homer. And then Anthony Kaye coming in 0:08:23.520 --> 0:08:25.380 and only retiring one of the three batters he faced 0:08:25.400 --> 0:08:27.840 to bring in Taylor. So there are some guys who 0:08:27.880 --> 0:08:33.340 are tired. The entire concept of pitching chaos, I think 0:08:33.380 --> 0:08:37.240 you're seeing the limitations of it, especially when it's kind of– 0:08:37.950 --> 0:08:40.790 hinges on Taylor being the guy who puts out fires 0:08:41.410 --> 0:08:45.020 anywhere between the sixth and ninth innings. But yeah, there, 0:08:45.179 --> 0:08:46.679 you know, and we saw it the day before too, 0:08:46.700 --> 0:08:48.880 with like David Sandlin struggling in the eighth and Davis 0:08:48.920 --> 0:08:52.220 Martin in the ninth, like just, there are fresh pitchers 0:08:52.240 --> 0:08:54.280 who are not getting the job done either. So it's 0:08:54.330 --> 0:09:00.929 really a, a cumulative cascading type of meltdown. Yeah. 0:09:01.690 --> 0:09:01.970 Yeah. 0:09:02.050 --> 0:09:05.589 Cause really they just scored a two innings, Jim. And 0:09:05.790 --> 0:09:08.679 as I mentioned before you joined, um, These are some 0:09:08.700 --> 0:09:10.380 of the type of games that we've seen the White 0:09:10.420 --> 0:09:14.820 Sox do to other teams this 2026 season where, you know, 0:09:14.860 --> 0:09:18.469 it's seven innings of just nothing offensively for the Guardians. 0:09:18.510 --> 0:09:23.050 And then just wallop nine runs combined in the fifth 0:09:23.090 --> 0:09:27.030 and sixth innings and just really a gut punch for 0:09:27.070 --> 0:09:29.450 the Chicago White Sox. And I don't know what you're 0:09:29.470 --> 0:09:32.340 going to have to do on the pitching side. if 0:09:32.380 --> 0:09:34.250 the white Sox are able to win game five and 0:09:34.260 --> 0:09:37.420 go to the American league championship series, but I don't 0:09:37.470 --> 0:09:41.949 even want to contemplate how you even, there's no point 0:09:42.470 --> 0:09:44.950 even talk about the American league championship series right now. 0:09:45.050 --> 0:09:47.850 It's really just, what can you do in game five 0:09:48.510 --> 0:09:51.010 and how you approach that game? Do you even want 0:09:51.070 --> 0:09:54.610 to have Grant Taylor available? The thing that kind of 0:09:54.650 --> 0:09:58.449 drives me nuts about that sixth inning. And I mean, 0:09:58.470 --> 0:10:02.160 Brady Montgomery just fell short. trying to make that diving catch. 0:10:02.760 --> 0:10:05.620 Travis was on us now had multiple good at bats 0:10:05.660 --> 0:10:09.559 against the Anthony K. Is there any left-handed pitcher on 0:10:09.980 --> 0:10:12.760 this staff right now that you're confident Jim, other than 0:10:12.820 --> 0:10:16.740 Sean Newcomb that can get a lefty out? That's the 0:10:16.760 --> 0:10:20.580 thing that's just bizarre to me. Anthony Kaye's had good 0:10:20.740 --> 0:10:24.210 outings against the Guardians this year. I figured he could 0:10:24.230 --> 0:10:28.850 at least give you one inning against the team. But yeah, 0:10:28.870 --> 0:10:30.770 to your point, I don't know how you use Anthony 0:10:30.809 --> 0:10:33.530 Kaye if the White Sox end up winning game five 0:10:33.550 --> 0:10:36.880 and continue on. I don't know how you use him. 0:10:37.040 --> 0:10:39.099 Maybe you don't even have him on the roster in 0:10:39.120 --> 0:10:41.840 the American League Championship Series. But so many of these 0:10:41.890 --> 0:10:44.760 lefties have just really struggled to get the lefties out. 0:10:44.820 --> 0:10:46.480 And that, that's a big concern. 0:10:48.440 --> 0:10:52.120 Yeah. I think like maybe Noah Schultz might be the one. 0:10:52.580 --> 0:10:56.140 And I think, you know, when you're talking about which 0:10:56.220 --> 0:10:59.199 pitchers should be trusted in game five, like you said, 0:10:59.240 --> 0:11:01.340 it's kind of between two Sean's right now with Burke 0:11:01.360 --> 0:11:06.040 and Newcomb. And then, you know, maybe Noah Schultz for 0:11:06.200 --> 0:11:08.500 an extra lefty, like, you know, it'd be using him 0:11:08.520 --> 0:11:10.500 in a way he's not accustomed to being used, but, 0:11:11.679 --> 0:11:13.770 He did look the best, I think, and just most 0:11:13.910 --> 0:11:17.790 under control and willing to go in the strike zone, 0:11:18.050 --> 0:11:22.130 I think, of anybody in that game. And at that point, 0:11:22.170 --> 0:11:25.390 I think you reward that. Jordan Hicks, probably go to 0:11:25.429 --> 0:11:27.700 him again just because he didn't throw all that many pitches. 0:11:28.500 --> 0:11:32.060 And you figure like, okay, just, yeah. I think you 0:11:32.080 --> 0:11:34.140 still treat him in the Taylor role, even if he 0:11:34.160 --> 0:11:37.700 gets burned again, like at a It's really kind of 0:11:37.740 --> 0:11:39.600 down to those four pitchers. Like you said, I think 0:11:39.640 --> 0:11:43.640 the good news, or at least the solace, I guess, 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:46.000 is that the pitching is very simplified in terms of 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:49.240 who you're using and probably what order. Sean Burke from 0:11:49.280 --> 0:11:54.350 the start put it on his shoulders. And then after that, 0:11:54.450 --> 0:11:57.810 Sean Newcomb for two to three innings or no, just 0:11:57.850 --> 0:11:59.910 you can kind of go from there, but it's kind 0:11:59.929 --> 0:12:03.780 of hinges on either Burke or And if he looks 0:12:04.880 --> 0:12:09.260 like overmatched from the start, then it's purely just probably 0:12:09.260 --> 0:12:12.079 10 pitchers being used or something like that. Some kind 0:12:12.100 --> 0:12:15.460 of insanity to end it. 0:12:16.120 --> 0:12:18.020 Yeah, you're going to have to score like 15 runs. 0:12:18.120 --> 0:12:20.420 Like if it doesn't work with Sean Burke, yeah, the 0:12:20.500 --> 0:12:23.630 offense is going to have to win a slugfest in 0:12:23.670 --> 0:12:27.000 order to make it to. the American league championship series 0:12:27.040 --> 0:12:29.320 that I have to give Cleveland credit though, Jim, the 0:12:29.380 --> 0:12:31.900 sixth inning. I really love the approaches that they took 0:12:31.960 --> 0:12:35.340 against grant Taylor. Uh, you mentioned the softball swings. I 0:12:35.380 --> 0:12:37.360 think in my high school coach would call it just 0:12:37.400 --> 0:12:40.599 playing pepper when the infield is in, you just got 0:12:40.620 --> 0:12:41.900 to get it to shallow outfield. 0:12:42.080 --> 0:12:42.340 Right. 0:12:42.540 --> 0:12:46.000 And Cleveland was able to do that. And they were 0:12:46.140 --> 0:12:49.240 on grant Taylor. They had a great game plan for 0:12:49.280 --> 0:12:51.660 grant Taylor. We know that he's just going to throw 0:12:51.700 --> 0:12:53.970 a bunch of curveballs because that's what he threw against 0:12:54.020 --> 0:12:55.730 us in game one. So we're just going to wait 0:12:56.230 --> 0:12:59.550 for the curve. And it was curve after curve after 0:12:59.590 --> 0:13:02.670 curve after curve. And Kyle Teal is not picking up 0:13:02.970 --> 0:13:06.309 on the tendencies of what the Guardians hitters are looking for. 0:13:06.840 --> 0:13:09.100 So it's really hard for me at this moment to 0:13:09.160 --> 0:13:12.969 calculate and be confident in that analysis of how much 0:13:13.010 --> 0:13:15.450 I want to put the onus on Kyle Teal. But 0:13:15.510 --> 0:13:17.510 even like with Jordan Hicks giving up that home run 0:13:17.550 --> 0:13:20.530 to Jose Ramirez, first pitch was a high fastball. And 0:13:20.550 --> 0:13:23.740 then the second pitch, you called the same exact pitch 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:28.579 in the same exact location, allowing Jose Ramirez to give 0:13:28.640 --> 0:13:33.480 him an opportunity to elevate that pitch. And again, I'm 0:13:33.520 --> 0:13:36.230 not too confident. I have to go through baseball savant 0:13:36.270 --> 0:13:38.969 and do a deep dive study gym and the way 0:13:39.010 --> 0:13:41.750 that Kyle Teal calls games. But I don't think that's 0:13:41.790 --> 0:13:46.570 helping anything, too. But at the same time, Cleveland's got 0:13:46.590 --> 0:13:49.870 to put the ball in play. And they did that consistently. 0:13:50.010 --> 0:13:52.450 So I have to give them a tip of the 0:13:52.490 --> 0:13:56.360 cap because only striking out three times and playoff baseball gym. 0:13:56.800 --> 0:13:59.040 That's phenomenal work by the Guardians offense. 0:14:00.559 --> 0:14:02.020 Well, I think part of the reason was he was 0:14:02.059 --> 0:14:04.760 struggling to locate his fastball. Like he only one of 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:08.120 the four found the zone and barely at that. You know, 0:14:08.140 --> 0:14:10.040 some big misses. And so I think he was just like, 0:14:11.100 --> 0:14:12.860 we got to go with the best pitch that worked before. 0:14:13.080 --> 0:14:15.079 And same thing with his appearance in game two, like 0:14:15.100 --> 0:14:18.980 the fastball was the one that Adele almost hit out 0:14:19.060 --> 0:14:21.120 and he had to go to the curveball there. So 0:14:21.160 --> 0:14:24.380 I think it's a case where. either the fastball is 0:14:24.500 --> 0:14:28.590 flat or just, you know, he's, he's, he averaged 98. 0:14:28.590 --> 0:14:31.710 So it's not a pure velocity thing, but might be 0:14:31.790 --> 0:14:34.990 life or something like that to where it's not either 0:14:35.030 --> 0:14:37.190 getting home or it's missing its spots where he tries 0:14:37.230 --> 0:14:38.870 to rear back and get more. But that's why I 0:14:38.910 --> 0:14:41.070 think he was going to the curve ball so much 0:14:41.110 --> 0:14:44.840 because it really had been his only pitch, uh, that 0:14:44.860 --> 0:14:48.480 was working for him. And, um, you know, he'd walked, uh, 0:14:48.520 --> 0:14:52.930 you know, the, The base is loaded for that with 0:14:53.110 --> 0:14:55.550 eight pitches out of the zone, barely missing, but still 0:14:55.730 --> 0:15:00.150 missing and missing up. That's why it suggests to me 0:15:00.190 --> 0:15:02.730 that when you're missing up like that, Steve Stone likes 0:15:02.770 --> 0:15:04.910 to say, oh, the release point's getting higher. It means 0:15:04.950 --> 0:15:10.850 he's fatigued. It's either fatigue or just because he doesn't 0:15:10.930 --> 0:15:12.710 have the normal life on it, just the mechanics are 0:15:12.750 --> 0:15:17.810 out of whack, and it's just leaving everything either up 0:15:18.230 --> 0:15:20.610 or even if he hits his spots, it does just 0:15:20.630 --> 0:15:22.400 doesn't end up getting there because the bat gets to it. 0:15:23.050 --> 0:15:23.240 Yeah. 0:15:23.600 --> 0:15:24.940 Well, we're going to take a quick break for a 0:15:24.940 --> 0:15:27.240 word from our sponsors, but coming up next on our 0:15:27.280 --> 0:15:30.760 post game show, the positives from today that give me 0:15:30.820 --> 0:15:34.840 some hope because while we could be really angry at 0:15:34.880 --> 0:15:38.970 the white socks and how everything transpired, there is still 0:15:39.070 --> 0:15:42.570 one more game left in this division series. And maybe 0:15:42.630 --> 0:15:45.430 Jim is going to end up being right here in 0:15:45.470 --> 0:15:49.000 which Cleveland's going to have a dramatic win. in Game 5, 0:15:49.000 --> 0:15:52.000 and he nails the prediction. Or this is a repeat 0:15:52.090 --> 0:15:53.850 of what we saw in the World Series a few 0:15:53.890 --> 0:15:56.710 years ago between the Nationals and the Astros, and no 0:15:56.750 --> 0:16:00.370 home team's going to win in this ALDS. And hopefully 0:16:00.410 --> 0:16:02.530 that is now the case as the White Sox still 0:16:02.890 --> 0:16:06.000 have not clinched a postseason series at home. But we'll 0:16:06.020 --> 0:16:09.020 be talking about those positives and look ahead to Game 0:16:09.020 --> 0:16:13.990 5 after a quick word from our sponsors. The MLB 0:16:14.000 --> 0:16:16.190 postseason has arrived, and if you want to see the 0:16:16.290 --> 0:16:20.830 action in person, you need SeatGeek. 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Hey, Howard. 0:17:14.670 --> 0:17:16.570 In case you need a lawyer, here's my business card. 0:17:17.290 --> 0:17:18.369 I'm attorney Howard Ankin. 0:17:18.530 --> 0:17:19.510 Oh, hey, Howard. 0:17:19.550 --> 0:17:21.670 You or someone you know has been hurt at work, 0:17:22.359 --> 0:17:25.359 Ankin Law can get the medical bills paid, the lost 0:17:25.400 --> 0:17:29.460 wages reimbursed, and the compensation you deserve. 0:17:30.050 --> 0:17:30.550 Hey, Howard. 0:17:30.609 --> 0:17:32.570 We're one of the largest filers throughout the state of 0:17:32.590 --> 0:17:38.850 Illinois of workers' compensation claims. We're here to help. Call 312-6MILLION. 0:17:39.550 --> 0:17:42.340 Injury law made personal. That's Ankin Law. 0:17:44.180 --> 0:17:46.730 We'll go back to the Sox Machine podcast as we 0:17:46.770 --> 0:17:50.190 are streaming live from the Remova Theater, recapping Game 4. 0:17:50.190 --> 0:17:53.409 I'm Josh Nelson alongside Jim Margulis as the Cardians are 0:17:53.490 --> 0:17:56.770 forcing a Game 5 as back-to-back games at Raid Field. 0:17:56.830 --> 0:17:58.709 Maybe that's what they needed, Jim. They needed to get 0:17:58.930 --> 0:18:02.750 out of home, get away from Cleveland, go hit on 0:18:02.790 --> 0:18:06.270 the road, and put up nine runs in back-to-back games. 0:18:06.330 --> 0:18:09.960 Just amazing. But as I mentioned before the breakout, I 0:18:09.980 --> 0:18:13.800 do want to find some positives in a silver lining because... 0:18:13.850 --> 0:18:17.770 It's really easy to be in despair and dour because 0:18:18.170 --> 0:18:22.650 that's most of the White Sox history as a franchise. 0:18:23.310 --> 0:18:26.770 But I loved the way that this team did respond, 0:18:26.850 --> 0:18:30.490 especially in the fifth inning. And I was excited to maybe, 0:18:30.730 --> 0:18:32.730 just maybe, the White Sox can hold on to a 0:18:33.230 --> 0:18:35.710 one-run lead. But of course, that's burned me many times 0:18:35.770 --> 0:18:38.189 this season. But for the Guardians to go and hit 0:18:38.230 --> 0:18:39.850 those two big home runs and take a 3-2 lead, 0:18:41.500 --> 0:18:44.040 And for the White Sox to respond right back and 0:18:44.080 --> 0:18:47.419 to take the lead 4-3, I love that fight from 0:18:47.460 --> 0:18:50.180 the White Sox offense. The White Sox offense also drew 0:18:50.330 --> 0:18:54.690 eight walks today. I thought Murataka Murakami played really well defensively. 0:18:55.109 --> 0:18:57.850 Sam Antonacci got hit by a pitch. And if you 0:18:57.890 --> 0:19:00.090 told me in the ninth inning, Josh, that Miguel Vargas 0:19:00.150 --> 0:19:02.669 is going to hit a home run off Guardians closer 0:19:02.710 --> 0:19:05.950 Kate Smith. what a dramatic way to book a ticket 0:19:05.970 --> 0:19:09.500 to the American league championship series. But alas, that's obviously 0:19:09.580 --> 0:19:13.040 not the case, but there are some positives, but the 0:19:13.060 --> 0:19:16.480 question I have for Cleveland, Jim, why did Gavin Williams 0:19:16.540 --> 0:19:17.220 pitch the ninth? 0:19:19.480 --> 0:19:24.690 That was baffling to me. I'm curious to see what 0:19:24.730 --> 0:19:28.050 Steven Vogt says. I mean, like Cade Smith for two 0:19:28.090 --> 0:19:32.109 winnings with a five run lead is also baffling to me. 0:19:32.130 --> 0:19:37.780 And again, That's a case where, you know, we pitched 0:19:37.820 --> 0:19:39.280 two innings the night before. 0:19:39.280 --> 0:19:44.379 Yeah. I mean, it's very like it's such a reversal from, 0:19:44.380 --> 0:19:48.600 you know, the the, you know, losing a series with 0:19:48.640 --> 0:19:51.580 Craig Kimbrell in the bullpen and Zach Britton, the bullpen, 0:19:51.600 --> 0:19:54.719 like your best closers in the, in the 2010s or, 0:19:54.760 --> 0:19:57.520 you know, that was a couple of cautionary tales for 0:19:57.540 --> 0:20:01.060 managers of like not using your closer when the game's 0:20:01.119 --> 0:20:03.340 on the line, because there's not a safe situation lined 0:20:03.420 --> 0:20:05.610 up for him. And now it seems like it's gone 0:20:05.640 --> 0:20:07.850 the other way. I mean, we've seen Will Venable use 0:20:07.890 --> 0:20:11.790 Grant Taylor in the sixth and like, that's, Because he'd 0:20:11.850 --> 0:20:13.770 used Grant Taylor all over the place, that didn't stand out. 0:20:13.790 --> 0:20:18.570 But now you're seeing Cade Smith, who's only thrown more 0:20:18.609 --> 0:20:20.810 than one inning 13 times. I think he's only completed 0:20:20.910 --> 0:20:24.210 two innings a few times this year. Coming in and 0:20:24.250 --> 0:20:31.260 protecting five and six run leads for two innings. Yeah, 0:20:31.600 --> 0:20:32.580 it's way too much. 0:20:32.600 --> 0:20:32.840 Yeah. 0:20:33.820 --> 0:20:35.860 You could always go to like, yeah, I think Matt 0:20:35.920 --> 0:20:39.780 Festa was somebody available. And if he gives up a 0:20:39.800 --> 0:20:41.320 couple of runs in the eighth, then sure, you have 0:20:41.340 --> 0:20:43.399 Cade Smith for the ninth inning in a safe situation. 0:20:44.240 --> 0:20:46.760 But what's the point of building that kind of lead 0:20:47.680 --> 0:20:49.800 if you don't use it to rest guys? And then 0:20:49.900 --> 0:20:55.090 to have Gavin Williams come in in the ninth, like 0:20:56.330 --> 0:20:57.710 to go back to the White Sox side of things, 0:20:57.730 --> 0:20:59.670 like one of the reasons why I didn't mind seeing 0:20:59.710 --> 0:21:02.570 Grant Taylor in the sixth is because you can't avoid him. 0:21:03.450 --> 0:21:07.190 Game's kind of, yeah, it's not entirely on the line there, 0:21:07.210 --> 0:21:10.949 but it was a potential inflection point. And if Taylor, 0:21:11.550 --> 0:21:13.130 if it's a continuation of game two where it looks 0:21:13.170 --> 0:21:16.389 like he has nothing, then that kind of answers your 0:21:16.410 --> 0:21:18.320 question in terms of who the White Sox should use 0:21:18.340 --> 0:21:20.720 the rest of the way. Grant Burke, sorry, Sean Burke 0:21:20.740 --> 0:21:23.379 was hanging around in the bullpen. Uh, but like if 0:21:23.420 --> 0:21:25.460 Taylor gives up a couple of runs there and looked 0:21:25.500 --> 0:21:27.040 even worse than that, but like if he gives a 0:21:27.080 --> 0:21:30.160 couple of runs, don't throw good money after bad, uh, 0:21:30.200 --> 0:21:31.820 just go with your low leverage guys, see if they 0:21:31.840 --> 0:21:34.220 can keep the score reasonable. And if not save Sean 0:21:34.260 --> 0:21:38.720 Burke and all your resources for game five, uh, and 0:21:38.740 --> 0:21:41.080 then to see the guardians have a five run lead 0:21:41.100 --> 0:21:44.619 and then use their game five starter in the ninth. 0:21:45.820 --> 0:21:49.080 I just, yeah. did not understand it whatsoever. It just 0:21:49.119 --> 0:21:51.480 felt like it was throwing the White Sox a bone 0:21:51.560 --> 0:21:55.320 when it could have been really an uphill battle going 0:21:55.340 --> 0:21:57.400 to Cleveland. Like, oh, you have your number two starter, 0:21:57.420 --> 0:21:58.959 who's a number one starter in a lot of staffs, 0:21:59.359 --> 0:22:03.770 fully rested for game five. And then you have Cade Smith, 0:22:03.810 --> 0:22:06.910 who didn't even have to pitch theoretically in this game, 0:22:07.630 --> 0:22:10.610