Williams Gets the Ball: Guardians Name Game 5 Starter After Bullpen Cameo

The Cleveland Guardians are handing the ball to Gavin Williams for the biggest game of their season — one night after he closed one out.

Manager Stephen Vogt announced Friday that Williams will start Saturday's winner-take-all ALDS Game 5 against the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field (8:08 p.m. ET), even though the right-hander threw 18 pitches in relief to record the final three outs of Thursday's 9-5 Game 4 win. Cleveland burned through eight pitchers to force the decisive game, threatening to scramble its pitching plans, but Vogt is sticking with his Game 2 hero.

Williams struck out 11 in his Game 2 start, then made his first career relief appearance in the ninth inning of Game 4 after closer Cade Smith wobbled. Vogt noted Friday was Williams' scheduled side-session day anyway, so the club treated the outing as a high-intensity bullpen.

The White Sox will counter with Sean Burke as they try to avoid a historic collapse. Chicago took a 2-0 series lead at home, but Cleveland has won two straight in Chicago, and the road team has won all four games in the series. The Guardians are chasing history: no team has rallied from 2-0 down in a best-of-five since the 2017 Yankees did it against Cleveland itself. The winner opens the ALCS at Tampa Bay on Monday.