Brayan Rocchio's Ninth-Inning Double Beats the White Sox Again, Pulls Guardians Within Half a Game

Down 6-5 to the Chicago White Sox with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and two strikes on him, Cleveland's Brayan Rocchio turned on a 100-mph fastball and lined it down the left-field line. Rookie outfielder Sam Antonacci took a poor route to the ball, it fell just out of his reach, and both Daniel Schneemann and David Fry scored — a 7-6 Guardians win, and Rocchio's major-league-best fourth walk-off hit of the season.

Every one of Rocchio's four walk-offs this season has come against an AL Central opponent, and two of them — including Wednesday's — have come specifically against the White Sox and their reliever Grant Taylor. This wasn't a fluke encounter; it's becoming a pattern the White Sox have had to live with.

The win pulled Cleveland (77-75) to within half a game of Chicago (77-74) for first place in the AL Central, turning a game the Guardians were losing into one that reshapes the division race with two weeks left in the season. In a race this tight, a single ninth-inning swing carries weight well beyond the final score.