The Chicago White Sox are no longer just this postseason's feel-good story — they're moving on. Chicago completed a two-game sweep of the Houston Astros in the American League Wild Card Series on Wednesday, winning Game 2 by a final score of 7-3 at home to punch its ticket to the ALDS for the first time in 21 years.

The White Sox jumped out early, building a 4-0 lead before Houston clawed back to within a run in the fifth inning. The Astros' comeback bid died in the sixth, when Chicago infielder Chase Meidroth turned on a pitch from Houston reliever Bryan Abreu and drove it out of the park for a three-run home run, restoring Chicago's cushion for good. Right-hander A. Kay picked up the win; Abreu and starter Hunter Brown were tagged with the loss.

A Franchise's First Series Win Since 2005

It is the White Sox's first postseason series victory since their World Series championship run in 2005 — a two-decade drought that included several last-place finishes and a 101-loss season as recently as 2023. Chicago snuck into October as one of this year's wild card entrants, and its run through the Astros, a perennial postseason fixture, has turned the South Side into one of the stranger — and more entertaining — stories of this year's playoffs.

Houston, by contrast, exits the postseason far earlier than it is accustomed to. The Astros have been American League mainstays in October for the better part of a decade, and a first-round exit represents a significant stumble for a franchise built to win now.

CHICAGO'S "CINDERELLA" RUN IS REAL — AND IT'S NOT DONE YET.

The White Sox now await the winner of the other American League Wild Card matchups to learn their ALDS opponent and schedule, with the Division Series set to begin later this week. Chicago will need to quickly shift its focus from celebrating a historic sweep to preparing for a deeper, more experienced club.

For a fan base that has watched division rivals and even cross-town counterparts outpace them in recent years, Wednesday's win offers a rare jolt of October relevance. Full live scores and bracket updates for the rest of the Wild Card round, including the still-unresolved Yankees-Red Sox and Padres-Cubs series, continued to update throughout Wednesday night.

What's next: the White Sox will have a short runway to set a rotation for the ALDS, while Houston's front office faces an offseason of questions after a season that was expected to end in a deeper October run. Current wild card standings and postseason seeding remain in flux until the rest of this week's series wrap up.