No one knew how the Chicago White Sox would respond when they lost their clubhouse leader, 14-year-old Drake LaRoche, prior to the season. As it turns out, they have been just fine. Maybe playing a bit over their heads if this recent string of games is any indication, but just fine, nonetheless. The Cleveland Indians will limp into town following a poor weekend series against the Boston Red Sox.
The first and second games of this four-game set will be a doubleheader to make up for an earlier rainout. Game 1 starts at 5:10 p.m. ET and Game 2 will follow shortly after its conclusion (tentatively scheduled for 8:40 p.m. ET).
Matchups
- Monday (Game 1), 5:10 p.m. ET: Mike Clevinger (RHP) vs. Mat Latos (RHP)
- Monday (Game 2), 8:40 p.m. ET: Cody Anderson (RHP) vs. Erik Johnson (RHP)
- Tuesday, 8:10 p.m. ET: Josh Tomlin (RHP) vs. Chris Sale (LHP)
- Wednesday, 2:10 p.m. ET: Corey Kluber (RHP) vs. Jose Quintana (LHP)
It is a little difficult to be optimistic about these matchups for the Indians. The Tribe will send Mike Clevinger and Cody Anderson to the mound for Monday's doubleheader, the former making just his second start in the majors and the latter probably has not been abducted and replaced by a pitcher with a different arm.
This will be Erik Johson's second start of the season for the White Sox, his first coming against the Red Sox on May when he allowed four earned runs on eight hits. Assuming Anderson cannot defeat him, the Indians will be guaranteed a win against Chris Sale tomorrow as Josh Tomlin unleashes his power of being undefeated following an Indians loss.
The Corey Kluber-Jose Quintana matchup would favor the Indians in recent seasons, but I am not convinced the Indians offense can come back from another Kluber outing in which he struggles for the first two innings. He will need to be near-perfect against the White Sox lineup as Quintana carves up the Indians.
Upcoming schedule: Following this series, the Indians return to Progressive Field to host the Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, and Kansas City Royals. Things are not going to get any easier from here on out.
Chicago White Sox |
Offense |
AL Rank |
Pitching |
AL Rank |
|||
Record |
26-18 |
R/G |
4.16 |
9th |
ERA |
3.18 |
1st |
AL Central |
1st |
OBP |
.324 |
4th |
HR/9 |
0.85 |
2nd |
Last 10 |
3-7 |
SLG |
.390 |
10th |
BB/9 |
2.88 |
4th |
Streak |
W1 |
Steals |
16 |
10th |
SO/9 |
7.70 |
10th |
It seems weird that a team led by strikeout machine Chris Sale could rank so low in strikeouts, but lanky lefty is on pace for one of the lowest strikeout seasons of his career. His current 24.5 percent strikeout rate would be well below his career average of 28.2 percent a shade under his previous worst, 24.9 percent in 2012 -- his first year as a full-time starter.
The White Sox jumped out to an early American League Central Division lead, but that lead -- which was as high as six games at one point -- has slowly dwindled away as the Sox struggle and the Indians surge.
The strength of this White Sox team is clear: They don't give up a lot of runs or home runs. The biggest advantage to the Indians is the fact they have strikeout issues right now, so maybe Mike Napoli can avoid striking out in every single at-bat.
White sox position players
- C: Alex Avila
- 1B: Jose Abreu
- 2B: Brett Lawrie
- SS: Jimmy Rollins
- 3B: Todd Frazier
- LF: Melky Cabrera
- CF: Austin Jackson
- RF: Adam Eaton
- DH: Avisail Garcia
- C: Dioner Navarro
- INF: Tyler Saladino
- INF: Carlos Sanchez
- OF: Jerry Sands
Adam Eaton has been great for the White Sox in their fast start, with a team-high 129 wRC+ and .304/.391/.427 slash line. The team leader in home runs is currently Todd Frazier with 13. Frazier was a player the Indians reportedly targeted in the offseason, but the Cincinnati Reds demands were way too high for the 30-year-old third baseman. His power and defense sure would be nice at third base right now for the Tribe, but certainly not for Clint Frazier and Bradley Zimmer.
Another potential Indians offseason target, Austin Jackson, is off to an atrocious start for the Sox. His .222/.289/.306 slash is good for just 63 wRC+, worst among qualified White Sox batters.
- LHP: Chris Sale
- LHP: Jose Quintana
- LHP: Carlos Rodon
- RHP: Mat Latos
- RHP: Miguel Gonzalez
- RHP: David Robertson
- LHP: Zach Duke
- RHP: Zach Putnam
- LHP: Dan Jennings
- RHP: Nate Jones
- RHP: Matt Albers
- LHP: Matt Purke
Outside of the aforementioned strikeout issues, Chris Sale is having a very Chris Sale year. His 1.58 ERA leads White Sox starters and he has walked just four percent of the batters he has faced this year. That number would be a career-high if it held up over a full season.
This White Sox staff has enough left-handed pitcher to keep Jason Kipnis up at night, and the Indians will face two of their best in Sale and Quintana. You can bet this Indians lineup will see a heavy dose of Zach Duke, Dan Jennings, and Matt Purke as well.