The Baggies stretched their unbeaten run to nine but it was a case of what could have been for Carlos Corberan’s side, who could have further cemented their play-off spot with victory at the bet365 Stadium.
Celtic loanee Mikey Johnston and Jed Wallace put the visitors two goals to the good with strikes either side of half-time.
But Million Manhoef grabbed one back before Andre Vidigal levelled with the rebound after Alex Palmer saved his penalty.
Stoke are now four points clear of the drop after picking up five points from their last three.
Steven Schumacher freshened up his side after Monday’s draw against Huddersfield with a quartet of changes.
Three of them were in attacking areas as Manhoef, Sead Haksabanovic and Ryan Mmaee returned to the starting line-up along with defender Enda Stevens.
Meanwhile, Corberan made three changes as Cedric Kipre, Grady Diangana and captain Jed Wallace replaced Semi Ajayi, John Swift and Tom Fellows after the draw with Watford.
Baggies stopper Palmer had to be alert early on to keep out Haksabanovic’s strike after he skipped past a defender.
Palmer was quick off his line to deny Mmaee one-on-one, before Haksabanovic fired wide from a tight angle.
For all of the Potters’ good work, it was the visitors who took the lead in the 24th minute. Johnston broke the deadlock with his seventh goal since making the switch from the Scottish giants as he smashed home at the near post after being found by Diangana.
Down the other end, Stevens came close to drawing the hosts back level as he struck wide of the mark.
And Mmaee did the same after he was exceptionally found by a ball over the top from captain Josh Laurent.
After the break, the Morocco international drove his way into the box and forced Palmer into action, but he went down injured soon after and was replaced by Tyrese Campbell.
Wallace doubled the lead just before the hour mark as Daniel Iversen could only push Brandon Thomas-Asante’s cross into his path.
Vidigal and Wouter Burger were hauled on by Schumacher in a desperate attempt to get something from the game.
Vidigal linked up with fellow substitute Campbell as the dragged his effort wide.
But the hosts halved the deficit with little over 20 minutes to go when Dutchman Ki-Jana Hoever flicked the ball into compatriot Manhoef’s path and he made no mistake as he buried his first goal for the club.
Substitute Yann M’Vila gave away a penalty when he brought down Campbell inside the box with 13 minutes left.
Palmer kept out Vidigal’s spot-kick but the Portuguese forward made no mistake from the follow-up to level.
Albion’s big chance came in the seventh minute of stoppage time as Andreas Weimann, an 87th-minute substitute, poked wide.
Defender Dan Ballard broke the deadlock in the 69th minute before Dan Neil doubled Sunderland’s lead and looked to have wrapped up the points six minutes from time.
West Brom hit back through substitute Brandon Thomas-Asante in the 86th minute but Sunderland held out and brought a three-game winless run to an end as Dodds – who was put in caretaker charge after Tony Mowbray’s sacking on Monday – got off to the perfect start.
The victory lifted the Black Cats briefly back into the top six ahead of the 3pm kick-offs, while for Albion it was a second successive defeat after last week’s loss at home to leaders Leicester.
Sunderland made a confident start and would have been a goal up inside 15 minutes had Jobe Bellingham’s close-range rebound not been wrongly ruled out for onside.
Bellingham – starting up front for the Black Cats in the week his older brother Jude described him as a “thoroughbred striker” – was on hand to tap into an empty net after Alex Palmer could only parry Adil Aouchiche’s strike. The assistant’s flag was raised but replays showed the 18-year-old was clearly onside.
Undeterred, Sunderland remained on the front foot and had a strong penalty shout waved away when Patrick Roberts hit the deck after a weaving run from the right.
West Brom grew into the game and although they did not manage a shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, they finished the first period on top, despite the frustration of losing striker Josh Maja.
Making his first return to Sunderland since leaving the Black Cats four years ago and his first start of the season for the Baggies, Maja’s afternoon was cut short after Ballard’s heavy tackle 10 minutes before the interval.
Sunderland were the better team in the early stages of the second half and came agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock 12 minutes after the restart.
After good build-up play from Roberts on the right, Aouchiche’s strike from inside the box crashed back off the post before Jack Clarke’s rebound was superbly saved by Palmer.
Dodds turned to his bench, introducing Alex Pritchard in place of Aouchiche, and the change worked a treat. It was substitute Pritchard who swung in the 70th minute free-kick for Ballard to head home.
Pritchard was again involved in the second goal, setting Neil away, with the midfielder keeping his cool and lifting the ball over Palmer.
Albion responded and two substitutes combined as Thomas-Asante headed in Pipa’s cross from the left. Jeremy Sarmiento had a penalty claim waved away deep in stoppage time.
The hosts took the lead and lost it again within the first 17 minutes before fighting back at a drenched Vicarage Road.
With the game declining as a spectacle due to the conditions, Ismael believed his side were too sloppy.
He said: “We made a mistake and we gave West Brom a chance to stay in the game.
“To come back into the game shows a great mentality. We do the right thing but if we want to improve we have to avoid mistakes – to be more ruthless.
“At the minute we take too many chances to score. Sometimes it works well, so this is what we take from the game.
“If you see their second goal, it’s incredible. It’s a process when you work with young players you have to be patient.”
Those braving the rain in Hertfordshire witnessed a pulsating opening 23 minutes.
Tom Ince netted his first goal for Watford after just three minutes but West Brom responded with a John Swift free-kick and a Jed Wallace strike to lead 14 minutes later.
But Watford replied when Matheus Martins picked the ball up, made his way to the edge of the area and struck sweetly past Alex Palmer.
The contest saw no further goals, although Daniel Bachmann had to turn away a Brandon Thomas-Asante drive after the break.
Alex Palmer was made to turn a header from Ismael Kone on to the crossbar and away to safety, but a point was enough for both sides.
West Brom head coach Carlos Corberan wanted his side to be firmer in their play.
He said: “We conceded an early goal, it was a poor start to the game. We played a ball we shouldn’t have done.
“In general, I had the feeling in the first half that we were too deep, we were not aggressive enough in pressing them.
“Today, I liked the reaction of the team after the first goal, we should have been more aggressive in defence.
“There was a lot of effort but it was not the most technical game. We will analyse, review and improve.”
Bruce signed an 18-month contract to replace Valerien Ismael, who was dismissed after just seven months at the helm on Wednesday.
West Brom have won just one of their past seven games in the Championship and slipped to sixth following a 2-0 loss at Millwall on Saturday, leaving them eight points adrift of the automatic promotion places.
Bruce, who spent two years in charge of West Brom's rivals Aston Villa from 2016, has been promoted to the Premier League four times in his managerial career and was available after being sacked by Newcastle in October, shortly after the Tyneside club's lucrative takeover.
He has been named manager; Ismael was head coach at The Hawthorns.
"I am delighted to have the opportunity to manage a club that has such great history and tradition," Bruce said in a statement. "It is a club I obviously know well from my time in the Midlands, and I am already relishing the challenge of taking it forward.
"I did not envisage I would return to management this quickly, but once I got the phone call from Ron [Gourlay, West Brom CEO], I knew I could not resist the challenge of getting this club back to where they want to be.
"I am coming in with one aim and that is to get Albion to the Premier League."
Gourlay added: "Steve is a highly respected and experienced manager who has an impressive record of earning promotion to the Premier League.
"His excellent man-management skills, tactical nous, and ability to hit the ground running were among the many reasons we decided he was the man to take us forward.
"Promotion remains our objective for this season, and we are confident that with Steve leading the club we have given ourselves every chance of achieving that goal."
Furlong struck in stoppage time to draw Albion, who had trailed by two goals, level at The Hawthorns.
Edo Kayembe had opened the scoring for the visitors in the 51st with a fine finish and then the Hornets doubled their lead through Mileta Rajovic in the 66th minute.
However, the Baggies refused to roll over and Brandon Thomas-Asante pulled a goal back in the 71st minute, before Furlong fired in a wonderful strike from range, in added time, to restore parity.
West Brom settled quickly and began to zip the ball around in the Watford half but the first chance carved out came as a result of a Hornets error.
Francisco Sierralta was caught in possession by Thomas-Asante, who bore down on goal but was denied by Daniel Bachmann in the visiting goal. John Swift then swept the rebound into the path of Mikey Johnston, who was also squeezed away from a clean shot on target.
Thomas-Asante was kept at bay for the second time in quick succession when he met Furlong’s cross, only for Bachmann to once again beat away his effort.
Watford began to grow into the game, with Emmanuel Dennis the main threat. However, the visitors struggled to create openings of similar clarity to those which Albion had failed to take advantage of.
The Hornets returned with renewed vigour after the interval and nosed themselves in front after a period of early pressure. Tom Dele-Bashiru’s in-swinging corner was only cleared by Semi Ajayi as far as Kayembe who, on the edge of the penalty area, expertly controlled the ball and beat Alex Palmer with a clean, low shot into the corner.
Interim manager Tom Cleverley wasted no time in looking to build on his side’s breakthrough and immediately introduced Rajovic and Yaser Asprilla.
While West Brom continued to toil, Watford smelled blood and made it 2-0 when Asprilla spread the ball to Jamal Lewis, who picked out Rajovic at the back post and he rolled the ball home.
Carlos Corberan reacted with three substitutes of his own and Grady Diangana, one of those changes, made an instant impact when he lifted the ball through the Watford back-line for Thomas-Asante to race onto. Despite the angle always tightening, the forward made no mistake on this occasion and hammered his effort into the far corner to halve the deficit.
Watford did have the chance to extend their lead again but Asprilla found the torso of Palmer and the hosts, late on, built up some steam.
Diangana again was the architect of their leveller, in the first minute of added time, laying the ball on for Furlong, who shot from distance. Bachmann got his fingertips to it, but could not keep the effort out.
It earned fifth-placed West Brom a point which extended their advantage over the chasing sides in the race for the play-offs.
Palmer denied Millwall forward Zian Flemming from the spot in the 27th minute, before Alex Mowatt and Brandon Thomas-Asante hit the woodwork after the break.
The result means West Brom have gone four games without a win, although they have drawn their last three.
Millwall kept a second successive clean sheet after beating Rotherham 3-0 in midweek.
On a day when The Hawthorns rose to salute late West Brom midfielder Ian Hamilton, who died recently at the age of 55, both sides failed to spark in a forgettable first half featuring too many mistakes and too few chances.
West Brom head coach Carlos Corberan made five changes from Wednesday’s 2-2 draw at Watford, but those recalled barely suggested they were able to improve things.
After the break West Brom stepped up a gear and had several chances to take the advantage only to be denied by some vigilant Millwall defending.
Millwall almost took a second-minute lead in bizarre circumstances.
Palmer was forced to tip the ball over after his clearance from a back pass hit striker Duncan Watmore and sailed dangerously close to goal.
Grady Diangana – looking to make a positive impression on his first start of the season – had the home side’s first chance with a low drive that was deflected wide.
The first half burst into life when Millwall were awarded a penalty.
Ryan Longman’s corner was handled by Kyle Bartley, who had twice been off for treatment for a facial injury following an aerial clash.
But Palmer got a good hand to Flemming’s spot-kick diving low to his right.
From the resulting corner swung in by Longman, Tom Bradshaw’s glancing header drifted wide of the far post.
West Brom hit the second half running and twice went close to the breakthrough in the 50th minute.
Thomas-Asante’s shot was saved by goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski and Matt Phillips’ follow-up was blocked by Longman after Diangana crossed.
Erik Pieters kept up the hosts’ momentum with a low drive from 25 yards that Bialkowski fumbled, Thomas-Asante unable to find a team-mate from the loose ball.
West Brom continued to look the more likely scorers – especially in the 63rd minute when Mowatt’s curling free-kick rattled the underside of the crossbar.
In the scramble that ensued, Semi Ajayi glanced just wide.
Albion hit the woodwork for the second time in the 73rd minute.
This time Thomas-Asante’s header was deflected onto the bar after Conor Townsend crossed, Phillips nodded back into the danger area and two Millwall defenders got in the way.
Right at the death, Thomas-Asante failed to get a proper connection with a close-range header from Mowatt’s deep cross.
Captain Jed Wallace slotted home the opening goal on 14 minutes before Lewie Coyle scored only the third goal of his career to equalise four minutes before half-time for the visitors.
Matt Phillips grabbed his third goal of the season midway through the second half to put the hosts back in-front before Semi Ajayi secured the points with just under 20 minutes remaining.
The hosts produced a fast start with Wallace and Grady Diangana both having goal-bound attempts well blocked in the opening three minutes.
Hull though, backed by 1,780 travelling supporters, grew into the contest and Liam Delap flashed a ball across the face of goal, which nobody in black and amber anticipated, before Scott Twine appealed for a penalty after he went down under a challenge from Darnell Furlong.
West Brom took the lead through Wallace when Hull’s Jean Michael Seri gifted the ball to the forward and he calmly rolled it past Ryan Allsop for the game’s opening goal.
Hull began to dominate possession but found their opponents’ defence hard to break down.
Twine, who is yet to score for the club, struck a free kick from the edge of the penalty area straight into the West Brom wall after Kyle Bartley had fouled Delap.
However, Twine was to turn provider when his cross to the back post was met by the incoming Coyle and the Hull captain struck a volley that bounced into the far corner of the goal to bring the game level going into half-time.
Delap appealed for a penalty early in the second half after going down under the close attention of Conor Townsend.
Coyle though was again the man of the moment, this time in his defensive duties, when he put in a well-timed challenge to deny Phillips when the forward was about to pull the trigger.
There was another injury concern for Baggies manager Carlos Corberan when Bartley was forced off with a suspected shoulder injury and had to be replaced by fellow centre-back Ajayi.
The Baggies restored their advantage on 65 minutes when Diangana was released down the right wing, cut inside Jacob Greaves and showed composure to play the ball across to an unmarked Phillips who slotted the ball beyond Allsop.
Substitute Ajayi sealed the three points on 71 minutes when his shot deflected into the goal off Greaves, once again created by the good work of Diangana before the winger departed to a standing ovation.
Play was suspended for more than half an hour at The Hawthorns as trouble flared in the stands and fans spilled onto the pitch, with six individuals arrested for a number of offences in the immediate aftermath.
Albion said in a statement: “A number of individuals have been identified as part of the club’s ongoing investigation into the disruption and their details have been passed to West Midlands Police for further criminal investigation.
“In addition, the club has written to these supporters to inform them their ticket accounts have been suspended, ensuring they cannot attend games at The Hawthorns until further notice.
“On conclusion of all criminal inquiries, Albion will issue club bans to anyone found to have been responsible for Sunday’s unacceptable events.”
West Midlands Police said that six supporters – four Albion fans and two from Wolves – were arrested on the day of the match for offences including assaulting police officers and brandishing a corner flag as a weapon.
Albion said they will continue to work with the Police and with the Football Association, which is carrying out its own investigation into the chaotic scenes which followed the scoring of Wolves’ second goal by Matheus Cunha.
The statement added: “The safety of everyone who attends home games is the club’s absolute priority and we know the scenes witnessed on Sunday do not represent the vast majority of Baggies fans.
“We will work tirelessly, alongside the police, to bring offenders to justice and stamp this behaviour out of our game.”
The Baggies stormed ahead in a frantic first half thanks to Cedric Kipre’s 22nd-minute strike and John Swift’s 27th-minute thunderbolt, but Boro replied a minute later through Emmanuel Latte Lath.
Albion struck quickly in the second period through Brandon Thomas-Asante to make it 3-1 before Tommy Smith was shown his marching orders for the visitors soon after.
Marcus Forss did convert a late penalty, but the Baggies made sure of the points when Jeremy Sarmiento struck in stoppage time.
The first notable opportunity fell to the visitors, but it was of West Brom’s own making. Semi Ajayi, when receiving Okay Yokuslu’s pass inside his own penalty area, was caught in possession by Riley McGree and the Australian poked a low effort at goal which Alex Palmer was able to save with his leg.
Passing up that chance would prove costly, as Albion went up the other end and produced the afternoon’s first goal.
Darnell Furlong’s long throw-in was contested by Ajayi and Darragh Lenihan, but the loose ball fell to Kipre, who made room for himself, chested the ball down and struck a smart half-volley past Seny Dieng.
West Brom doubled their advantage a little over five minutes later when Jayson Molumby fed Swift, who was allowed time and space to drive forwards from midfield and fire a powerful shot into the top corner.
The first half fun and games were not done there, though, as Boro hit back instantly. Samuel Silvera ran at Matt Phillips on the right-hand side and the cross which followed was nodded past Palmer by Latte Lath.
The Ivorian centre-forward might have doubled his own tally before half-time, but he lifted another attempt over Palmer and also over the bar.
Equally, Albion could have extended their advantage at the other end, but Phillips pulled a low shot just wide of the far post.
Boro right-back Smith was booked for catching Jed Wallace just before half-time but it was his full-back counterpart Lukas Engel who endured a nightmare beginning to the second period when his attempted pass back was cut out by the lurking Thomas-Asante, who nipped in, took advantage of the loose ball and rounded Dieng before calmly rolling the ball home.
The Baggies were two goals to the good again, and shortly after they had a man advantage too, when Smith pulled Phillips’ shirt on the run and was dismissed with his second booking.
The home side, though, failed to put the game to bed and 10-man Boro were encouraged in the later stages when Isaiah Jones’ cross from the left struck the arm of Furlong and fellow substitute Forss rolled home the resulting penalty.
But West Brom would prevail when on-loan Brighton forward Sarmiento collected the ball from former Boro loanee Alex Mowatt in the penalty area before rifling his shot into the roof of the net.
Sarmiento’s second Albion goal five minutes after the restart lit up a contest that had been largely forgettable until that point and was enough to take West Brom into the top three of the Sky Bet Championship.
The Ecuador winger, on a season-long loan from Brighton, was at the World Cup this time last year and his goal would not have looked out of place at that tournament.
Sarmiento broke down the left before cutting inside Josh Bowler and unleashing a vicious curling 25-yard shot that flew into the far corner of Alex Runarsson’s net.
Although not as spectacular as Alejandro Garnacho’s stunning overhead kick for Manchester United at Everton on Sunday, it will be a chief contender for West Brom’s goal of the season.
Albion’s fifth win in six games moved them above Leeds and Southampton – who both play on Wednesday – and seven points behind second-placed Ipswich.
Victory would have taken Cardiff above Albion, but the Bluebirds were flat throughout as they slipped to a second successive home defeat.
The game quickly settled into a cautious affair with neither side willing to take too many risks.
Cedric Kipre, who spent last season on loan at Cardiff and whose April winner at Rotherham virtually guaranteed the Bluebirds’ survival, was on hand for Albion to block from former team-mate Joe Ralls.
West Brom struggled to make an impact in the final third and were handicapped by the departure of Jed Wallace, who left the action holding his arm and in obvious pain.
Okay Yokuslu fired wildly from 25 yards for the visitors before Sarmiento and Bowler tangled at the other end.
Bowler went down to some half-hearted penalty appeals as Callum Robinson, against his former employers, picked up the loose ball and shot over.
The deadlock was almost broken after 31 minutes when Cardiff were exposed defensively from their own corner.
Albion had a four-on-two situation but Grady Diangana delayed the final pass and the stretching Sarmiento could only trickle his effort against the post.
Bowler, Cardiff’s biggest attacking threat down the left, immediately escaped marker Conor Townsend and shimmied his way past Kipre but Alex Palmer was off his line quickly to smother.
Sarmiento’s sublime strike gave Albion the edge as both sides turned heavily to their bench for the final half-hour.
Yokuslu had excelled in the midfield battle before being withdrawn in the final quarter and Albion should have doubled their advantage 15 minutes from time.
Ryan Wintle sliced Darnell Furlong’s long throw to the far post where the unmarked Brandon Thomas-Asante directed his header over.
Cardiff stirred in the final 10 minutes as Rubin Colwill made a lively impact from the bench, the Wales international having two shots blocked, and Bowler and Manolis Siopis blasted over.
But the night belonged to Carlos Corberan’s Albion and in particular Sarmiento.
