South Side Column: The White Sox And Guardians Might Have Started Something Special

While the White Sox are up 2-0 in their American League Division Series matchup against the Guardians and it coming back to Rate Field, what many don't realize is that this could be the birth of something incredible. Dare I say a bitter rivalry? Now, Cleveland could come back and win this series and I hope not, but with how great the first two games have been, we are witnessing the beginning of something.

Back in the 90's, that should have been the start of a rivalry that might have even rivaled the Boston Red Sox-New York Yankees one. But, the Sox couldn't keep some players and also made some bad decisions thus leading to Cleveland reigning supreme in the AL Central. The Pale Hose, in the third largest market, should have the money to be like the Yankees of the division (though admittedly don't have as much money as their North Side counterpart), but that doesn't mean Cleveland couldn't have competed with them. Those Cleveland teams of the 90's were so good and it's a shame to see with all that talent that they didn't even win one World Series even with those Bronx Bombers teams that were a dynasty. Just imagine the Sox, Indians, Red Sox, and Yankees dueling out for playoff spots year and year out (yes, Seattle and Baltimore had some good seasons), that would have been an incredible span of baseball.

Now, both teams have a chance at creating an even bigger rivalry than it already is. Both are very young and talented. While the Sox have more resources to build a strong side, Guardians have the analytics and scouting to keep them competitive. That isn't to say the Pale Hose aren't scouting or using analytics as they've recently embraced that, it's just something Cleveland has done really well to stay to competitive. These are stark contrasts as to how to construct a competitive ball team, but both are building strong sides. If that is the case, then now this is the time for the rivalry becoming bigger.

Both the White Sox and Guardians could become the Red Sox And Yankees Of The AL Central with both duking it out for the division title for years to come and meeting up in the postseason and having epic clashes whether it's in the Wild Card Series, Division Series, or Championship Series. Of course, both have to make the right decisions and not make bad investments for that to happen. It's clear after 2026 with the familiarity with one another, plus with this current playoff matchup that they have, it could be fun to watch especially seeing them both in the playoffs. Heck, the Sox won seven of the thirteen regular season matchups, but there were also four walkoff victories between the two. That makes for exciting baseball. I don't think both franchises know the capability of how much of an exciting rivalry this could be, but either way, it makes for great baseball cinema.