Chicago White Sox reliever Grant Taylor delivered a historic four-inning save in a 3-0 win over the Cleveland Guardians in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday at Progressive Field.
The 24-year-old right-hander allowed two hits, struck out six and walked none over 42 pitches.
He became the first pitcher in postseason history to record a save of four or more innings while striking out at least six with zero walks.
Taylor entered in the sixth inning with Chicago leading 2-0 and struck out the side in the ninth to close it out.
According to MLB.
com, he is also just the sixth pitcher since saves became an official statistic in 1969 to record a postseason save of four or more innings.
Taylor described his approach coming out of the bullpen in the middle innings.
"My job at this point, coming into the sixth inning, is to go as deep as they let me and hand it off to the next guy in a winning situation," Taylor said.
The outing followed a 54-pitch, 2 1/3-inning relief appearance by Taylor on Tuesday in a 6-3 win over the Houston Astros in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series.
Both postseason appearances mark the longest outings of his Major League Baseball career by innings and pitch count.
Venable Praises Taylor's Durability
White Sox manager Will Venable praised the reliever's performance and durability after the game.
"I don't know what else to say about him," Venable said. "He's a beast out there.
He wants the ball. His stuff is really good.
I thought he actually got better as that outing went on. So some incredible stuff from Grant."
Venable added that managing Taylor's usage remains a priority as the postseason continues.
"If Grant is going to pitch four innings every game, I think we will like, kill him, right?"
Venable said.
Catcher Kyle Teel reflected on the quality of pitching he witnessed from behind the plate.
"That's the best I've probably ever seen anyone pitch," Teel said. "That was just unbelievable, the way he hit his spots, the amount of movement on his pitches."
"Just unbelievable," Teel added. "Some of the best pitching I've ever seen.
Hitting his spots left and right, and attacking hitters."
Taylor missed the entire 2023 season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery at LSU before converting from a starter to a reliever at Double-A Birmingham in 2024.
He posted a 2.25 ERA with 106 strikeouts over 84 regular-season innings for Chicago in 2026.
Taylor explained the communication between coaching staff members before he returned to the mound for his fourth inning of work in the ninth.
"I know that when I come in the dugout and Will doesn't tell me that I'm done immediately that there's a possibility," Taylor said.
"I had my whole setup in the tunnel. I beelined for it.
I wasn't going to let him tell me he changed his mind."
Taylor detailed the specific conversation with pitching coach Zach Bove in the dugout prior to the final frame.
"Zach Bove came down and gave me a look that at this point of the year I know means, 'How do you feel?
What you got?' And I gave him a nod.
He went back, talked to Will. They came back and told me I was going out," Taylor said.
Addressing his historical trajectory, Taylor recalled conversations regarding his collegiate role prior to his elbow injury.
"After I blew out, they told me I was going to be Saturday," Taylor said. "I've heard some different things from different guys."
Discussing his pitch sequence against Cleveland, Taylor noted how his arsenal performed throughout the relief appearance.
"My stuff was really good, so I was able to rely on some stuff multiple times in a row and double up," Taylor said.
Pitching coach Zach Bove explained how Taylor's newly added sinker complements his high-velocity four-seam fastball, curveball and slider.
"That sinker throws a wrench in it," Bove said.
Taylor acknowledged potential conversations with executive leadership regarding a future transition back to a starting pitching role.
"After the season ends, I'll talk to Chris Getz and the front office about it," Taylor said.
"We've had some pretty good back-and-forth about it over this past offseason on what might look like and the path for that.
Up until this point, everything's gone to plan with trying to get to a certain amount of innings."
Taylor expressed his focus on the current postseason run rather than offseason planning.
"We'll hopefully have that conversation in a month," Taylor said. "Rather than in a week."
Reflecting on his approach to multi-inning appearances, Taylor outlined his mental execution during games.
"My job when I come in is to give that one inning everything I've got and then come in the dugout and possibly go out for another," Taylor said.
"So I'm trying to give everything I can to that one pitch and that one inning.
And if I have more in the tank for multiples, then good for me."
Taylor highlighted the physical feeling of working four full innings in a single game.
"Being able to go out for four ups, haven't done that since 2024," Taylor said.
"So being able to do that and help the guys get the win is a lot of fun."
The reliever expressed appreciation for the collective pitching and defensive effort that secured the shutout.
"It was unbelievable," Taylor said. "We've done that the whole year of being able to hand it off to the next guy.
Hagen being able to go out and give us three strong and being able to come in and close the door.
Kay and the other guys pitching in some positions that aren't super familiar, but being able to do that in the postseason was unbelievable."
Comparing his current postseason experience with his collegiate career, Taylor noted the personal significance of contributing directly on the field.
"I feel like I was a part of that team in 2023," Taylor said. "But it didn't quite feel like my ring.
So being able to help this team when I can and be a centerpiece of that is awesome."
Taylor described the emotional release following the game-ending strikeout against Cleveland's Travis Bazzana.
"Being able to finish a game in that way was obviously very exciting," Taylor said. "I was trying to stay pretty even keel throughout the whole thing.
So there's a lot of pent-up emotions that were all expressed in one moment."
Reliever Anthony Kay pointed to game conditions that aided Taylor's curveball in the final inning.
"I mean, his stuff is nasty already to begin with, and then having those shadows, I think, played a little extra into some of those crazy swings," Kay said.
"But he's been special all year, and trying to do it for four innings is even crazier."
White Sox opener Hagen Smith addressed his flexible role within Chicago's pitching strategy.
"I'm just a pitcher at this point," Smith said.
Outfielder Tommy Pham recounted a sixth-inning fly ball to deep outfield caught by Cleveland's Angel Martínez at the wall.
"I've hit enough to know what is a homer, what should be a homer, and what isn't," Pham said.
"Everybody in our dugout was confused there, 106 mph pulled like that.
I hit a ball here two weeks ago that went 420 feet that I hit similar to that.
This ball I pulled it more."
Venable shared his initial reaction to Pham's fly ball before the double play was completed.
"You don't want that to happen, but you understand the read and trust the player," Venable said.
"I think every single person thought that that ball was at least halfway up the wall, if not a homer."
The Chicago White Sox hold a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series, with Game 2 scheduled for Monday afternoon at Progressive Field.
