The fate of the season hangs in the balance on Saturday night as the Chicago White Sox take on the Cleveland Guardians in a decisive Game 5 at Progressive Field.

There’s a lot riding on this one, and not just in the literal sense. That’s always the case in a win-or-go-home game. But given where the White Sox were just a few days ago, holding a 2-0 series lead with an opportunity to close things out at home, the team is now at risk of turning an otherwise magical season into a major disappointment.

With a win, those last two home losses will be behind them, and the White Sox will advance to the ALCS. They’ll get the last laugh against their division rival and move within four wins of reaching the World Series.

High stakes, to say the least.

So what are the keys to the game for the White Sox? How can a team that has struggled to deliver big hits with runners on base and appears to be running out of pitching go on the road and steal the series from a Guardians team that seemingly has all the momentum?

The White Sox can win Game 5 and advance to the ALCS if they do these three things.

This Guardians offense is incredibly reliant on free passes. White Sox manager Will Venable talked before the series about wanting to make Cleveland beat them.

Make them swing the bat. Make them get the big hit.

Defensive miscues and walks from the pitching staff are a recipe for creating traffic on the bases and generating chaos, which only benefits the Guardians. And in those two games at Rate Field, that was a major issue for White Sox pitching.

Chicago’s arms issued 17 total walks, helping Cleveland put together big innings and consistently giving the Guardians runners on base.

Not to mention the way those free passes drove up the pitch counts of White Sox relievers, forcing them out of games without recording many outs.

On Saturday, the White Sox need Sean Burke to be efficient. The season is on his shoulders. Not only does Chicago need him to limit the damage on the scoreboard, but the White Sox also need him to pitch deep into the game given the taxed bullpen that Venable is working with. There’s no telling how reliable that group will be.

Winning this game starts with throwing strikes and making the Guardians earn their offensive production.

The White Sox scored first in both Game 3 and Game 4, and both games ended in defeat. So by no means does scoring first guarantee success. But with the way this series currently feels and all the momentum resting on Cleveland’s side, I think it’s important for Chicago to take back control by getting on the scoreboard first.

Imagine the White Sox are able to jump out to a 2-0 lead after the second inning. All of a sudden, it’s Cleveland that once again has the clock running out on its season. It would reinforce the belief within the White Sox clubhouse that this series is still theirs for the taking, while swinging the momentum back in Chicago’s favor.

If the Guardians take an early lead, though, things will undoubtedly begin to feel dire for a White Sox team trying to avoid becoming the first team to blow a 2-0 lead in the Division Series since 2017.

The White Sox need to hit some home runs.

They have just two home runs in the series, one by Munetaka Murakami in Game 1 and another by Miguel Vargas in the ninth inning of Game 4, long after things were already out of reach.

For an offense that ranked fifth in baseball with 211 home runs during the regular season, that’s not going to cut it. Especially against Gavin Williams, who was tied for the 11th-most home runs allowed among pitchers in 2026 with 28.

We’ve seen the White Sox offense put together some good at-bats, run up pitch counts, take their walks and string together rallies. But over the last two games, Cleveland has done a nice job of limiting the damage when Chicago puts runners on base.

And the White Sox have been waiting to break through with that big hit.

Ultimately, that’s been the difference in these games. When you have the bases loaded, settling for a sacrifice fly is far from the worst-case scenario. But there’s a big difference between a sacrifice fly and clearing the bases with an extra-base hit. Or better yet, hitting a home run with runners on base to create some separation.

The White Sox got a massive three-run home run from Chase Meidroth in the series-clinching victory over Houston in the Wild Card Series. And it feels to me like they’ll need another big swing from one of their bats in Game 5 if they’re going to win in Cleveland.