What a fun Tuesday, right? The White Sox exploded for 14 hits and nine runs in today’s matchup with the Royals, consistently hammering opposing starter Brad Keller on the way to victory. They jumped on Keller right out of the gate, with Eloy Jiménez, José Abreu, and AJ Pollock all posting RBI singles in the first inning. The Sox led 3-0 after the first inning and never looked back.
Lucas Giolito took the bump for the South Siders for the 19th time in the 2022 season and allowed two earned runs over five innings. Though his pitch count rose quickly as he struggled with command (three walks), he fought out of jams and recorded his seventh win of the season. He lowered his season ERA to 5.06 in the process.
Eloy Jiménez and José Abreu were the catalysts in the big win, combining to drive in an eye-popping seven RBI in the contest. They weren’t the only big contributors on the night, though, as Tim Anderson, Andrew Vaughn, and Josh Harrison provided multi-hit efforts out of the 1, 2, and 9 slots in the order, respectively. The Sox pelted Keller for 13 hits, and the biggest one of them all was a José Abreu 2-run blast to left field (104.5 mph exit velocity). Abreu continues to smoke the ball; he had four batted balls that clocked in above 104 mph exit velocity in tonight’s game.
Gavin Sheets also went yard in the decisive victory, with a 398-foot bomb to right field off of Josh Staumont. The solo home run was the ninth and final Sox run of the night, and it was also Sheets’ ninth home run of the year.
The Chicago White Sox moved above .500 to 52-51, and are now two games behind the division-leading Minnesota Twins in the AL Central.
W: Lucas Giolito (7-6, 5.06 ERA) | L: Brad Keller (5-12, 4.61 ERA)
Statcast Leaders
Box Score
Offensive Recap:
Pitching Recap:
White Sox Scoring Recap:
Bottom of the 1st:
Eloy Jiménez singles to right field. Andrew Vaughn scores. CWS 1- KC 0.
José Abreu singles to center field. Eloy Jiménez scores. CWS 2- KC 0.
AJ Pollock singles to center field. Yoán Moncada to second. José Abreu scores. CWS 3- KC 0.
Bottom of the 4th:
Eloy Jiménez doubles to left field. Andrew Vaughn to third. Tim Anderson scores. Josh Harrison scores. CWS 5- KC 2.
Bottom of the 6th:
Eloy Jiménez out on a sacrifice fly to left field. Tim Anderson out at third. Josh Harrison scores. CWS 6- KC 2.
José Abreu homers to left field. Andrew Vaughn scores. CWS 8- KC 2.
Bottom of the 7th:
Gavin Sheets homers to right field. CWS 9- KC 2.
Notable Performances
Lucas Giolito: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 2 ER, 7 K
While Lucas gave up 3+ free passes for the second straight start, he battled through five innings and ultimately gave the ballclub a great chance to win. His seven punchouts were the most he’s recorded since his July 8th outing against Detroit.
Jake Diekman: 1.0 IP, 0 H/BB, 2 K
After being acquired for Reese McGuire in the lone White Sox trade deadline move (Monday), Diekman was immediately called into action on Tuesday night. He relieved Lucas Giolito and pitched the 6th inning, with his stuff looking rather sharp. He flashed a mid-90s fastball and a crisp slider to wipe out two Royals in his White Sox debut.
Eloy Jiménez: 3-for-4, BB, 2B, R, 4 RBI (20)
Eloy is on fire as of late, which is a welcomed sight for all Sox fans. We saw him pepper the right-center gap in the latest series versus the Oakland Athletics, and he was all over Brad Keller tonight. He extended his hitting streak to eight games with the three-hit performance.
José Abreu: 2-for-5, 2 R, 2-run HR (13), 3 RBI (52)
Unsurprisingly, Abreu drove in several runs in an August ballgame. He’s always thrived in the late-summer months and continues to be the steadiest presence in the White Sox lineup. With his two-run homerun down the left-field line, he recorded his 51st and 52nd RBIs of the 2022 campaign.
Gavin Sheets: 1-for-4, HR (9), RBI (26)
Gavin smacked his second home run in his last four games with a missile to right field tonight. As a team in the bottom third of the majors in home runs, it will be important for the ball club that he continues to provide power from the left side.
Next Game
The White Sox will look to win the series tomorrow against Kansas City. Lance Lynn will square off against the Royals’ young right-hander Brady Singer.
The game can be viewed on NBC Sports Chicago at 1:10 PM CST.
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Featured Photo: Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports
