Game Thread: Guardians at White Sox, ALDS Game 3

Leading the way: Miguel Vargas, who is 2-for-4 with four walks, has been a big reason why the White Sox have a 2-0 series lead. | Photo by Leigh Bacho/MLB Photos via Getty Images After an exciting 4-3 victory, the White Sox (84-78) incredibly hold a 2-0 series lead over the Guardians (85-77) in the

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What is the story about?

After an exciting 4-3 victory, the White Sox (84-78) incredibly hold a 2-0 series lead over the Guardians

(85-77) in the ALDS. The South Siders are one victory away from advancing to the ALCS, where they have not been since 2005.

Sean Newcomb, 33, will start on the mound for the South Siders. Newcomb posted a 3.09 ERA and a 3.21 FIP in 90 1/3 regular season innings. Newcomb accumulated 1.7 fWAR, a very high single-season total for a relief pitcher. Newcomb pitched 8 1/3 innings against Cleveland in the regular season,

allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits. In that limited sample, the Guardians posted a .226/.368/.355 slash line against him.

Daniel Espino, 25, is a right-handed pitcher who will open the game against the South Siders. Espino posted a 4.11 ERA and a 3.75 FIP in 15 1/3 innings, resulting in an accumulation of 0.1 fWAR. Espino has pitched two innings and allowed one run against the White Sox. Miguel Vargas got the best of Espino on September 14, when he launched home run No. 31 out of 33 of his season.

Here are today’s starting lineups:

Baseball Reference keeps a statistic called cWPA, or Championship Win Probability Added. In this series, Grant Taylor (+3.42%) leads the way due to his ability to shut down the Guardians and close the first two games. Sean Burke (+3.00%) is No. 2, as his strong performance in Game 2 was crucial. Among hitters, Vargas (+2.81%) is the leader, as he is 2-for-4 with four walks. Munetaka Murakami (+2.07%) is next, which is no surprise, given that he is 3-for-8 with a homer. Up next is Braden Montgomery (+1.53%), who is only 1-for-7, but the lone hit was a clutch double that put the White Sox ahead.

This game is available on TBS and HBO Max, and the first pitch is scheduled to take place at 3:00 p.m. CT. Will the South Siders pick up another postseason series sweep? We will find out soon.