The White Sox had us in the first half, not gonna lie.
The Sox came into this one with a chance to take two of three and win the series. They started the game out with a bang, as Luis Robert Jr. and Eloy Jimenez hit back-to-back solo home runs to take a 2-0 lead in the first inning. That score would remain until the fourth inning, when Jake Burger and Andrew Vaughn decided to get in on the action and hit back-to-back solo home runs of their own, extending the lead to 4-0.
Meanwhile, the Dylan Cease we knew and loved from the 2022 season made an appearance for the first five innings of the game. Cease through those five innings shut out the Dodgers and struck out 10. He battled a bit in the fifth, with some frustration showing a bit after a miscommunication led to an easy infield pop-up falling to the ground and extending the inning. He came back out for the sixth inning, where he recorded one more out but also surrendered two baserunners and was replaced by Reynaldo Lopez. Then with one swing of the bat, it was a brand new ball game as Lopez surrendered a grand slam to Chris Taylor.
Both bullpens did their job over the next several innings, as the game remained tied at four and went into extra innings. For the Sox, Joe Kelly, Gregory Santos, Kendall Graveman, and Aaron Bummer combined for four shutout innings and only allowed one total hit.
Unfortunately, things changed in the 11th inning. The Sox failed to drive in a run, while Garrett Crochet loaded up the bases before losing the game on a Freddie Freeman walk-off fly ball.
This game was the epitome of the Sox season, as they gave the fans a glimmer of hope early in the game, suggesting that they can carry some momentum and take the series against a formidable opponent, only to crash down to reality and lose the game and their momentum. The White Sox now sit at 30-40, but remain 5.5 games back in the AL Central due to a Twins loss.
W: Caleb Ferguson (4-3) | L: Garrett Crochet (0-1)
Statcast Breakdown
Box Score
Offensive Recap:
Pitching Recap:
White Sox Scoring Recap:
- Top of the 1st: Robert Jr. homered to center. 1-0 White Sox.
- Top of the 1st: Jimenez homered to right center. 2-0 White Sox.
- Top of the 4th: Burger homered to center. 3-0 White Sox.
- Top of the 4th: Vaughn homered to left. 4-0 White Sox.
Notable Performances:
Dylan Cease: 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 10 K
For five innings, Dylan Cease was looking like the 2022 Cy Young candidate version of himself. He pitched five shutout innings but gave up a couple of hits in the sixth, and those runs scored on a grand slam after he was pulled from the game.
Luis Robert Jr.: 1-for-4, Solo HR (17), BB, 3 K
Luis Robert Jr. got things rolling in the first inning, taking a breaking pitch on the low and away corner nearly 420 feet to center field. He also had a walk in this one, but also had three productive at-bats that resulted in strikeouts.
Eloy Jimenez: 1-for-5, Solo HR (7), 3 K
Eloy Jimenez followed Robert Jr. with a solo home run of his own, resulting in the Sox first back-to-back home runs of the season. Unfortunately, things went downhill for Jimenez at the plate, as he struck out three times and failed to reach base for the rest of the game.
Jake Burger: 1-for-4, Solo HR (16), BB, 4 K
Jake Burger continues to hit bombs, as he hit his third home run in the past two days and extended the lead to 3-0 in the fourth inning. Unfortunately, he continued the theme of the lineup, as he struck out four times as well.
Next Matchup
The Sox will fly out to Seattle tomorrow to begin a three-game series with the 33-34 Mariners. Michael Kopech will look to continue his recent success against rookie pitcher Bryan Woo.
The first pitch is scheduled for 9:10 PM CST and will be broadcasted on Apple TV.
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Featured Image: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
