With the start of the White Sox regular season postponed due to coronavirus concerns, NBC Sports Chicago has decided to re-air 70 victories from the 2005 season from now until June. Here at Sox On 35th, we will also be following along and recapping those games for you in our Tale of the Tape series. Let’s start by turning back the clock to April 4, 2005. The White Sox began their magical season with a 1-0 victory on Opening Day, over the Cleveland Indians. The game was a perfect example of a pitchers duel, as Indians ace Jake Westbrook held the Sox to one run on four hits, while Mark Buehrle blanked The Tribe.
W: Mark Buehrle (1-0) | L: Jake Westbrook (0-1) | S: Shingo Takatsu (1)
The Good
- Mark Buehrle: 8.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 5 K, 1 BB
- 103 pitches – 66 strikes, 37 balls
- Paul Konerko (1B): 2-for-3, 2B, run
- Aaron Rowand (RF): RBI
- Shingo Takatsu (CP): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, K, SV (1)
- Defense: Played an errorless ball game with some nifty infield plays
The Bad
- Top of the Sox order: The 1-2-3 hitters (Podsednik, Iguchi, Everett) went a combined 0-for-10 with 3 strikeouts.
Moment of the Game
Paul Konerko’s seventh inning double is the moment of this ballgame. He later came around to score on an error and gave the Sox the only run they would need after a very slow start offensively.
Stats On 35th – Let’s Break This One Down by the Numbers
Today’s Numbers:
58.4, 6, 5, 50, 111
58.4
This game’s MVP in terms of Win Probability Added (WPA) was Mark Buehrle with a whopping 58.4 percentage points. Behind him was Shingo Takatsu with 17.2 and Paul Konerko with 11.1 points.
6
There were only six total hits by the two clubs after a pair of solid outings by both teams’ respective starters. Of those who recorded hits, Paulie was the only player to have a multi-hit performance.
5
Mark Buehrle totaled five strikeouts in his outing, dishing one a piece to Cleveland’s stars Coco Crisp and Travis Hafner.
50
The win probability entering the game was dead even at 50-50. Throughout the course of the game, the Indians were projected to come out on top, but Konerko’s double in the bottom of the seventh tipped the scales in the South Side’s favor, after he later scored to make it 1-0.
111
The game took a mere 1 hour and 51 minutes (111 minutes) to complete. We have Mark Buehrle to mainly thank for the quick pace of play, something many would probably enjoy today.
Looking Ahead:
- The next game covered will be White Sox at Minnesota from April 9, 2005. It will be aired on NBC Sports Chicago tomorrow at 4:00 pm. Look for a recap after the airing of the game.
Player of the Game
Mark Buehrle is the first to land on the leaderboard after tossing eight scoreless and striking out five.
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