The Chicago White Sox are sticking with the unconventional pitching strategy that carried them through the Wild Card Series as they prepare for the Cleveland Guardians.
The biggest question surrounding the Chicago White Sox and their ability to make a deep playoff run is the pitching.
Chicago's starting rotation doesn't look like that of a typical playoff team, nor does its approach to navigating pivotal postseason innings.
In Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Houston Astros, manager Will Venable decided to dial up a bullpen game. Rookie left-hander Hagen Smith got the start and delivered three scoreless innings. From there, Venable pressed all the right buttons, piecing together the final six innings to secure a Game 1 victory.
That carried over into Game 2, when the bullpen picked up Sean Burke, Chicago's top starting pitcher, and helped the White Sox complete the series sweep.
Looking ahead to the ALDS and a divisional matchup against the Cleveland Guardians, one might have expected right-hander Davis Martin to get a look early in the series.
Martin ended the regular season on a bit of a rough note, lasting just one inning against the Colorado Rockies in his final start of the year. But after he didn't pitch at all during the Wild Card Series, you'd think he'd be fresh and ready to battle Cleveland, even if Venable planned to keep him on a short leash.
Chicago, though, is sticking with the unconventional strategy that got them through the Wild Card Series as they begin the ALDS on Saturday.
Once again, rookie left-hander Hagen Smith will get the start for the White Sox in Game 1.
What happens after Smith is still up in the air. Perhaps the White Sox turn to Martin for multiple innings, or maybe Venable pieces together another bullpen effort. Either way, the schedule gives Chicago plenty of flexibility.
Game 1 will be played Saturday, followed by an off day Sunday before Game 2 on Monday. Another off day comes Tuesday before the series shifts to Chicago for Game 3 on Wednesday. That gives the White Sox a unique opportunity to once again throw the kitchen sink at their opponent, knowing they'll have built-in rest days to recover.
The schedule also lines up Burke to likely pitch in Game 2 on regular rest. From there, the White Sox could save left-hander Anthony Kay, who has had plenty of success against Cleveland this season, for bulk innings in Game 3 in Chicago.
The White Sox are, however, considering a bullpen game each time out. Venable could make matchup based decisions rather than rolling out a traditional starter. It's an unconventional approach, especially for a postseason rotation, but the White Sox have already shown they're comfortable treating every game like its own puzzle rather than relying on traditional starter roles.
While some may look at this strategy as unsustainable, I truly feel like this is the recipe for the White Sox in the postseason.
Yes, it's unconventional, but in the playoffs, you have to lean into your team's strengths. Starting pitching isn't a strength for the White Sox, but their bullpen depth is. They have an entire bullpen filled with pitchers capable of throwing multiple innings, and as we saw against Houston, that may be the thing that sets them apart from the rest of the American League.
Even when they do use a traditional starting pitcher, like Burke in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series, the leash should be short. Go to Hagen Smith. Go to Jordan Hicks. Go to Bryan Hudson. And if you need to give the ball to Grant Taylor for 50 pitches and nine outs, he's already proven capable of doing that too.
The White Sox aren't going to be able to line up their starting pitchers and go inning for inning with the Cleveland Guardians, who will roll with left-hander Parker Messick in Game 1 before turning to Gavin Williams in Game 2. Cleveland has the advantage in that regard.
But so did the Astros on paper when they sent Hunter Brown to the mound Wednesday.
The White Sox found a way to get to the opposing starter early, build a lead and turn things over to a bullpen they trust. That's the formula. Chicago doesn't need its starting rotation to suddenly become something it hasn't been all season. It needs to maximize what this pitching staff does well and continue finding creative ways to cover 27 outs.
More information about Chicago's pitching plan and the individual matchups should come out as we get closer to the series. But as the ALDS begins this weekend and the White Sox look to keep their magical run alive, they'll once again hand the ball to a rookie who proved in Houston that the moment wasn't too big for him.
Hagen Smith answered the call once. Now, the White Sox will ask him to help set the tone again, this time with a trip to the ALCS on the line.
