Let’s start with this – nothing about this team makes any sense.
After leading through most of this game, the White Sox slowly saw their lead evaporate until it went away in the top of the eighth. A 4-1 lead turned into 4-2, then 4-3, then a 5-4 deficit after a two-run homer by Jorge Polanco in the top of the eighth.
Then came the bottom of the eighth.
A strikeout by Leury Garcia was followed by walks by Adam Engel and Zack Collins. Andrew Vaughn tied the game with a pinch-hit single, and Billy Hamilton gave the Sox the lead with one of his own. Jose Abreu followed with a three-run homer, and all of the sudden, a 5-4 deficit turned into a 9-5 lead.
Just how we drew it up in Spring Training, right?
Before the hysterics, Dallas Keuchel was pretty good across five innings, and Kopech did his job for two more. Ryan Burr struggled in his one inning of work, but Liam Hendriks took care of business in the ninth.
With the win, the White Sox improve to 58-37, 9.5 games ahead of the Indians in the AL Central.
W: Ryan Burr (2-0) | L: Jorge Alcala (2-4)
Savant Leaders
Notable Performances
Dallas Keuchel: 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Keuchel pitched a solid five innings today, working himself in and out of trouble all while giving the Sox a good chance to win the ballgame. Keuchel continues to be pretty stabilizing force at the end of the rotation, and the White Sox will need him to continue to eat quality innings as they head towards the home stretch of this season.
Jose Abreu: 3-for-5, 2B, 3B, HR, 4 RBI
Jose Abreu found himself a single short of the cycle tonight and made up the difference between the Sox and the Twins on the scoreboard with 4 RBI. Abreu started the scoring with a 3B in the first and ended it with a home run in the 8th.
Yoan Moncada: 3-for-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI
Yoan Moncada also found himself just a hit short of the cycle – a triple in his case. Moncada adds another homer to his ledger this season, and some of the power that was dormant during the first half of the season appears to be finding its way onto the field.
Andrew Vaughn: 1-for-1, 1B, RBI
Andrew Vaughn pinch hit for Seby Zavala in the bottom of the eighth and did his job immediately, taking a 2-1 pitch and dropping it into center field for the game-tying single. It’s great to see Vaughn continue to make strides against RHP this season.
Other Notable Performances:
Adam Engel: 0-for-1, 3 BB
Brian Goodwin: 1-for-4, 1B, RBI, BB
Billy Hamilton: 1-for-1, 1B, RBI
Moment of the Game
Nothing about this team makes sense. It’s awesome.
Next Game
If you haven’t had enough fun this series, there’s still one more for you tomorrow. Dylan Cease will try to make it three in a row against the Twins tomorrow night against Michael Pineda.
The game will begin at 7:10 PM CT and can be viewed – as always – on NBC Sports Chicago.
