Outside of one abysmal half-inning to start the game, things couldn’t have gone better for the White Sox on Friday night. Yasmani Grandal announced his return in grand fashion, belting a game-tying three-run bomb in what would eventually turn into a football score White Sox victory. The South Siders secured the Crosstown Cup tonight, their first since 2016.
Dallas Keuchel saw his struggles go from bad to worse in the top of the first, surrendering six runs and getting pulled quickly one inning later. Reynaldo Lopez and an explosive Sox offense picked up the veteran, however, as the home team capitalized on numerous North Side errors to ultimately put up 17 in front of a sellout crowd.
Some shaky relief outings from Garrett Crochet and Craig Kimbrel allowed the Cubs to hang around, but finally, a wacky game was put to rest at 17-13 after over four hours of baseball.
With the win, the White Sox bolster their record to 75-55.
W: Reynaldo Lopez (3-1) | L: Adrian Sampson (0-1)
Savant Leaders
Notable Performances
Yasmani Grandal: 4-6, 2 HR, 2B, 1B, 8 RBI
After a nearly two-month absence, Yaz wasted no time in making his presence known. He failed with the bases juiced in the bottom of the first but promptly made up for it in the third inning with a moonshot three-run dinger to right field to tie the game at 6 apiece. Later, Grandal notched a 2-RBI double, which he later followed up with another 3-run bomb in the eighth. Glad to have you back is an understatement!
Reynaldo Lopez: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 7 K, 0 R
Did Lasik surgery really fix Reynaldo Lopez? It’s impossible to know, but the resurgent righty continues to impress on the South Side. Lopez took over against an offense that posted 6 first-inning runs and was promptly flawless the next five innings. In fact, with the benefit of an immediate caught-stealing, Lopez faced one less than the “minimum“. Reality bends to ReyLo’s will.
Tim Anderson, Luis Robert, Jose Abreu: 8-14, 9 R, 12 TB, 2 BB, 3 RBI
There are quite simply too many noteworthy offensive performances to give everyone a section. In short, though, the top of the order RAKED tonight. Abreu continued his unreal August hot streak, Luis Robert has looked menacing in his return to the field, and Tim Anderson knocked two doubles. Yoan Moncada, Eloy Jimenez, and Andrew Vaughn all reached base two or more times as well.
Next Game
With a trophy no longer to play for, Chicago teams will meet again tomorrow night at GRF for game two. Lance Lynn takes the bump for the White Sox against Alec Mills and the Cubs.
The game will begin at 6:10 PM CT and can be viewed on NBC Sports Chicago.
