Dylan Cease left no doubt on the diamond today, and the South Siders used some timely offense to cruise to a 3-0 victory. Andrew Vaughn and Tim Anderson provided two run-scoring singles, and it was all the boys in white would need today.
After a tough loss last night where the Sox offense floundered in the late innings, today’s game would have been a similar story if it weren’t for the lights-out Chicago pitching. Cease, Bummer, and Hendriks handled Detroit with ease, and the Sox now improve to a 36-23 record with a 4-game lead in the division thanks to Cleveland’s loss.
W: Dylan Cease (4-2) | L: Jose Urena (2-5) | S: Liam Hendriks (15)
Savant Leaders
Notable Performances
Dylan Cease: 7 IP, 0 R, 5 H, 1 BB, 10 K
The third-year starter controlled the game the whole way, registering big strikeouts when he needed it most. He recorded 16 swinging strikes, an indicator that his nasty stuff was moving well today. Cease is now 7-0 vs. the Tigers to begin his career, which ties a White Sox record.
Tim Anderson: 2-4, 2 RBI
TA continues to heat up, and he hit a clutch 2-run single in the second inning that would prove to be all the cushion the White Sox would need for the rest of the game. Anderson brought his average to .297 on the season, and he is beginning the creep back up to .300 once again.
Nick Madrigal: 2-for-3, R
Madrigal didn’t have a standout performance today, but he did add two hits to his season tally, raising his OPS to .773 on the season.
Yasmani Grandal: 0-4 (The unluckiest game of all time?)
According to Statcast, Grandal registered 4 hard-hit balls today, with three of them being over 100 mph. Every single one of them was fielded for an out, in what might be the unluckiest hitting performance I’ve ever seen in my life. Grandal really seems to be putting everything together in June, but the bad batted ball luck has not gone away sadly.
However, he did hit three homers in this series, so hopefully Grandal’s stretch of good baseball can continue into next week and beyond.
Adam Engel: 0-for-2
Adam Engel made his return to the lineup today, and while he had no hits at the plate, he saved Dylan Cease and the White Sox a run with this home run robbery. It’s great to see him back in the lineup.
Matchup of the Game
The White Sox had an early opportunity to strike today, and they took advantage of it. After an Adam Eaton triple to lead off the second inning, Andrew Vaughn worked an eight-pitch at-bat before lining a single into left field to give the White Sox a lead that they would never give back. It’s been an up-and-down season thus far for Vaughn, so it was nice to see him work the count until he got a pitch to hit.
Player of the Game
Dylan Cease is certainly the man of the match here. After a couple of up-and-down starts, Cease really put it together today. All four pitches were working well for him today; credit to Grandal for calling a great game as well.
Next Game
On Tuesday, June 8, the formidable Blue Jays come to town to take on the South Siders. Robbie Ray will take the mound for the Buffalo-based Jays, and Carlos Rodon looks to continue his magnificent season for the White Sox. The first pitch is at 7:10 Central Time and the broadcast is on NBC Sports Chicago.
