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Michael Kopech impresses in brief White Sox debut

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Michael Kopech postgame

Michael Kopech’s MLB debut had long been anticipated, and the young flamethrower did not disappoint when the lights, pressure and rain fell upon him at Guaranteed Rate Field Tuesday night.

It’s long been known that the trade of Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox marked a new chapter in the Chicago White Sox’ storied history: No longer would they try to tread water with talent already in the majors. Instead, they would officially commit to building from the ground up.

The White Sox, unsurprisingly, received quite the haul for Sale, and in the deal came Yoán Moncada, Luis Basabe, Victor Diaz and Michael Kopech, a right-handed pitching prospect with an electric arm and sky-high potential. Now over a year after Moncada’s introduction to the White Sox, Kopech was set to make his MLB debut on Chicago’s South Side against the Minnesota Twins. Kopechmania was more than alive, as made evident by the new Kopech jerseys lining the seats and the sizeable crowd that formed just to watch him warm up.

After allowing two lead-off hits, Kopech dialed in and sat down the next three Twins batters, sending the home crowd into a frenzy. He struck out the first two of the second inning and, after allowing two baserunners, struck out Joe Mauer looking with a 97-mile-per-hour heater. Kopech dazzled with a bevy of fastballs, but his breaking pitches showed everyone that he was more than just a thrower. The stage was set for a statement debut against a team he will see a lot of. The future had arrived and was ready to hit the ground running.

Then it started to rain.

And it kept raining.

Fifty-two minutes after the top of the second, the White Sox and Twins resumed play. Kopech, who was already 52 pitches deep, was done.

It left many disappointed and brought upon some boo-birds, but given the circumstances, the decision to cut Kopech’s night short made sense. With manager Rick Renteria still in the hospital in Minnesota, Joe McEwing was left to call the shots.

“We knew what time he came out of the game and the rain started and it was going to be about an hour,” McEwing said postgame. “He was up to 52, 53 pitches and, you know, with the rain lasting almost an hour and the delay an hour, we’re like ‘Hey, you know, let’s shut him down here and end on a positive note.'”

“I was a little bummed out,” Kopech said on his early exit. “I wanted to go a little deeper in the game. I didn’t realize my pitch count was as high as it was already anyway but either way, I got to experience the debut and, like I said, it was a dream come true.”

It’s hard to take much away from only two innings of work, but in his short outing, Kopech showed why there is so much excitement about him. His fastball was as electric as advertised, showing great movement and never dipping below 95-miles-per-hour. He supplemented a fastball-heavy night with offspeed pitches and breaking balls, displaying outstanding movement. He navigated through runners on the corners with no outs in the first and ended his night with four strikeouts.

“I thought he was unbelievable,” McEwing said. “I think across the board he shows you, not just stuff-wise but makeup-wise, he was in control of everything the whole game.”

Moncada, the other headliner in the Sale trade, would go on to hit a home run to tie the game at two in the seventh inning. Though he has yet to settle into a consistent groove, the 22-year-old second baseman is still a major piece of the rebuild and has loads of untapped potential. As has been a theme most of the season, thoughts on the future were much more important than the present, as the Twins would go on to win five to two. Kopech’s next projected start is for this Sunday, so more can be made from him then. For now, however, Kopech remains a beacon of hope for a franchise that hopes to be contending sooner rather than later.

Twitter: @crbevins50011

Hear audio from Michael Kopech and Joe McEwing:

Shields, White Sox Power to 5-1 win over Tribe

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The White Sox have been trending up, having gone 5-5 in their last ten games entering Tuesday night. While that record over ten games isn’t necessarily “trending up” for the contenders in Major League Baseball, it’s a good start for the rebuilding White Sox, who entered Tuesday with a 22-42 record. The Sox have been playing good baseball against good teams, winning a three-game series against two MLB powers, in the Boston Red Sox and Milwaukee Brewers.

White Sox manager Rick Renteria speaking postgame

The Sox continued their run of relative success in Tuesday night’s win over the division-leading Cleveland Indians, taking the second of a three-game set by a score of 5-1. They have now won five of their last eight and seven of their last 12. They even have the leading vote-getter among AL first basemen in José Abreu.

The White Sox wasted no time getting on the board Tuesday. Yoán Moncada, who had been struggling as of late, led the game off with a home run four pitches into the inning. Yolmer Sánchez followed suit by sending one of his own into the bleachers, and a Matt Davidson double brought home Daniel Palka to extend the lead to 3-0. Indians’ starter Adam Plutko was lifted after 4.2 innings of work in which he allowed eight hits, two home runs and five earned runs. The Sox would add two more runs in the fifth inning, but their first-inning outpour would be enough, as James Shields and the White Sox bullpen held Cleveland to only one run all night.

“My body feels really good right now,” Shields said following his outing. “Last couple years my body hasn’t really been up to par and, no excuses on my part, but at the end of the day my body feels good and I’m working really hard in between starts.”

“It’s really good to start the game like that,” Sánchez said postgame. “I was just looking for a fastball in and be aggressive on the first pitch.”

Shields was on, picking up his first win since March 29th in the season opener against Kansas City. More importantly the victory ended a 12-game winless streak. He went seven innings deep, allowing only one run and four hits.  Shields has actually pitched well recently. Tuesday night’s performance was Shields’s eighth quality start of the season, and he has thrown a 2.57 ERA in his last five home starts. Shields’s shortcomings have been mostly out of his control, with run support being an issue for most of the season. Tuesday night’s win was the first time Shields has received five or more runs of support since April 5th. He has excelled at eating up innings, as Tuesday marked his tenth consecutive start of throwing at least six innings pitched. His starts have reduced the stress of the bullpen, a unit that has tossed 21.2 consecutive scoreless innings and has a 1.75 ERA in June.

“It feels good,” Shields said on collecting an elusive win. “I mean, the boys came out swinging it early, get me a couple runs there… It definitely gave me a lot of confidence to attack the zone tonight against a really good lineup, so it was a good overall win.”

“We really needed him, obviously, to kind of get us those last few outs in the seventh,” manager Rick Renteria said. “This is a pretty tough lineup and we needed to be able to have some ability to maneuver and he did, he gave us that ability.”

The White Sox have shown positive signs as of late, having yet to lose a series in June and getting impressive pitching performances from Dylan Covey, Reynaldo Lopez and Carlos Rodón, three young pitchers who could very well be in the rotation of the future. There will most likely be more lows than highs, but such is expected with where the White Sox are in their rebuilding process. Shields is a competitor, and having a veteran arm to lean on and take pressure off pitchers that figure to be such crucial players in the future will be huge in the team’s development. Shields might not be part of their long-term plans, but he can affect those plans by replicating nights like Tuesday.

Twitter: @crbevins11

Hear audio from Rick Renteria, James Shields and Yolmer Sánchez.

White Sox get an all-around performance in 6-1 victory over Brewers

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Things haven’t been easy for the 2018 Chicago White Sox. Such should be expected for a team in the rebuilding position they are in, but the likes of Wellington Castillo and Avisail Garcia, while possibly not in their long-term plans, were expected to be reliable, veteran presences on a very young team. García has not played since April and Castillo will be suspended until late August. The two were never world beaters, but their absences make it that much more difficult for a young, inexperienced team to win baseball games, and the emphasis placed on young players producing grows even further. While wins are always important, development from the White Sox’ young players will be more important in the grand scheme of things.

So, Sunday’s win over the Milwaukee Brewers, holders of the best record in the National League, means a little extra.White Sox Logo retro

Dylan Covey had been an interesting prospect for some time now, and Sunday’s performance showed why. He was in control for seemingly the entire game, even during a fifth-inning bases-loaded jam. The 26-year-old righty finished his five-inning performance with seven strikeouts and no earned runs, lowering his season ERA to 2.82. A season ago, Covey struggled his way to a 0-7 record, putting together a 7.71 ERA through 70 innings of work. His ERA has decreased dramatically and he is already on his way to exceed last year’s strikeout total of 41 in 70 innings pitched. A team like the White Sox doesn’t have much to lean on, but Covey becoming a reliable weapon could go a long way in the team’s development.

“Yes, definitely have figured some things out,” Covey said on his improvements. “From spring training this year moving forward, I think I get a little better with every outing.”

Covey’s performance was not all that lifted the White Sox to their 6-1 victory over the team with the best record in the National League. The bullpen shut down a potent Brewers’ offense for four innings, with Jace Fry continuing his dominance out of the bullpen with a hitless, one-inning appearance. It is a unit that, like many groups of the team, has looked for consistency all year, and Sunday’s outing was a step in the right direction.

The White Sox put forth an impressive performance to match their pitching, however, something that has been a problem since Chris Sale and José Quintana donned the black and white pinstripes. In his first major league hit, Alfredo Gónzalez tied the game at one in the fifth inning, scoring Yóan Moncada, who had walked to get on. The next inning, Daniel Palka, pinch-hitting for José Rondón, smacked a two-run home run to right field to take a two-run lead. Adam Engel followed up Palka’s homer with one of his own, sending a ball that just eluded the outstretched glove of Lorenzo Cain at the center field fence to take a 4-1 lead. José Abreu continued his recent hot-streak by hitting a double in the eighth to score Yolmer Sánchez. One batter later, Engel came through once again by scoring Abreu on his own double. It was all the Sox needed as they capped off a series win over the NL-leading Milwaukee Brewers with a 6-1 victory.

“All we wanna do is win,” said Palka afterward. “It’s not fun to lose, so that’s the only thing on people’s mind is wanting to win.”

In total, the White Sox collected six hits and three walks from players age 26 or younger. Four of such hits were for extra bases, with two being home runs. For a team working to evaluate who fits and who doesn’t fit for the future, it’s a positive sign.

“The guys kept battling, they did a nice job,” manager Rick Renteria said in his postgame press conference.

The White Sox are a young, inexperienced group that is looking for pieces of their future. Days like Sunday will not become the norm for a couple years, assuming everything goes as planned. However, the young group they have stands to benefit by battling through the adversity of two of their leaders’ absences. This series against the Brewers, a series in which won two games by five runs, is one they can take many positives from and use going forward in their growth.

Hear audio from Rick Renteria, Dylan Covey and Daniel Palka.

Twitter: @crbevins11

 

Reynaldo López Shows Both Dominance and Hope for the Future

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Hope for the future is often what keeps fans interested in bad teams.

When teams have the kind of seasons the White Sox are in the midst of, it can be hard to remain optimistic. Because of this, fans often look for bright spots they hope can eventually be a franchise mainstay.

White Sox Logo retro

Through this point in his young career, and especially after Sunday’s gem against the Texas Rangers, White Sox pitcher Reynaldo López has asserted himself into this category.

As López came set for what would be his final pitch of the day on Sunday, the White Sox faithful rose to their feet with a feeling of excitement that had become all too unfamiliar this season. After firing a 96 MPH heater to sit down Shin-Soo Choo and end the eighth inning, López let his excitement show on his way back to the dugout, pumping his chest and further exciting a White Sox crowd that was witnessing the first series win at Guaranteed Rate Field in 2018.

López was dominant Sunday, tossing eight scoreless innings and eight strikeouts while walking two and allowing two hits. All season, López has quietly put together impressive statistics, pitching to a 1.85 ERA at Guaranteed Rate Field and allowing more than two earned runs only twice in nine starts all year. His season ERA is now at 2.98 and he leads his team in strikeouts with 39. Sunday was also, however, López’s first win of the season, bringing his record to an unfortunate, but not surprising, 1-3.

“I do think that he came out a little more focused, to be honest. The intensity level was a little higher today,” Rick Renteria said postgame. “[White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper] spoke to him a little bit about making sure he brought that intensity that he has the ability to do, and to bring it from pitch one and he did today.”

“It was the best [start] of my career,” López said through translator afterward.

Though he only needed one, López had three runs’ worth of support that began with a Wellington Castillo home run in the second inning. Leury García put his name on the stat sheet the next inning by hitting a single that brought home Adam Engel and Tim Anderson. With López on the hill, it was all the Sox needed in their 3-0 win. With his RBI-single, García has now hit safely in seven of his last eight games, and has become another bright spot in this tumultuous season.

It’s no secret the White Sox have been bad this season. They were on pace to lose 120 games earlier this week and have the worst record in baseball. Carson Fulmer, a player they had enough conviction to draft eight overall in the 2015 June Amateur Draft, was given an overdue demotion to triple-A on Friday after a disastrous string of starts. Though he has been strong as of late, Lucas Giolito’s 2018 ERA sits at 6.42. Yoan Moncada has been very good but hasn’t set the league on fire as he was advertised to.

It is also important to remember the White Sox are still a young, immature team. Moncada is still only 22 with a sky-high ceiling. Even if he only hits his floor, it’s a floor of a .848 OPS and reliable defense. Kids will have started and finished high school by the time he’s a free agent. They also have yet to call upon the services of grade-A prospects, like Eloy Jimenez and Michael Kopech, and have promising talent beyond them with names like Luis Robert and Dylan Cease. With the fourth pick in this year’s Amateur Draft and potentially the number one pick in next year’s draft, their talent pool will only increase. They will have money to spend and will eventually be able to supplement their young core with experienced talent. It’s a process that sucks to sit through, but it is one that worked for the Astros, Cubs and Royals.

For the time being, however, it’s bright spots that keep eyes on the White Sox. And right now, López may shine the brightest.

Hear audio from Rick Renteria, Leury García and Reynaldo López.

Twitter: @crbevins11

A Bad Love-The White Sox in Reflection

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The White Sox, are the worst girlfriend in baseball. On paper, you could see yourself spending the rest of your life with her, but when you start to look at things, you realize she is somewhat of a hot mess.  A hot, enticing mess that makes you want to pull your hair out.  Inconsistent, clutching, somewhat unattractively to her youthful prime, but clearly and less than gracefully aging, she is an expensive lady who makes you question way too often why you don’t dump her for some sort of upgrade that at least appears to care a little bit more. As we all know, sports, teams, they have a hold on us, like the worst of girlfriends.  The south side team from Chicago has tortured its fanbase this past season, in the way only a bad girlfriend could.  

With the efforts made in the offseason to fortify the roster with veteran talent, many people, both fans, media members, and the organization itself projected the White Sox to not only compete, but to become an exciting contender this season.  Additions like Melky Cabrera, Adam LaRoche, Zach Duke, David Robertson, and Jeff Samardzija combined with the return of the young highlights including Jose Abreu, Avisail Garcia, and Chris Sale were supposed to lead the franchise back to the playoffs.  

The club’s season hasn’t necessarily gone as planned.  The reasoning behind going on somewhat of a free agency shopping spree was the projected increase in ticket sales throughout the season due to the quality of the signings.  However, the reality of it is that the Cubs do better with attendance on a Thursday day game at 1:20 versus the Colorado Rockies than the Cell on a Friday evening. With only five sell-outs this year, two of which were for the Crosstown Classic, one can assuredly say that attendance has been lackluster this season, at the least.

The lack of attendance is undoubtedly somewhat due to the fact that the club is grossly underperforming relative to what was predicted of them, while the curse of low attendance has been plaguing this team for many years, big expectations or otherwise.  Speaking of tendencies of the south siders, a team that has been notorious for big bats and equally big home run statistics, winning record or otherwise, are most certainly not killing it in the home run column as of late.  The White Sox rank 24th in the statistic with 99 home runs.  The club is 22nd in hits with 998, 27th in on base percentage at .302, and dead last in both RBIs and runs with 414 and 437 respectively.  Defensively speaking, their statistics aren’t gorgeous either, they have the 7th most errors in the majors with 72.  Pitching-wise, the club is just above the middle of the pack, ranking 19th with an ERA of 3.99.  So the question begs, when the Sox looked great on paper before the season started, what are they actually good at?

They go on bouts of bad pitching, bad base running, bad fielding, bad hitting, and the loss column follows.  It’s hard to identify what the problem is: the players, the manager, the front office, but no one really seems to blame and no one really knows where to start.  It seems they’ll too often battle back from a deficit, only to give the game back in the bottom of the 9th or 10th or 13th.  

But the thing that makes it sting so much is that they almost stay in it.  They still sit only six games back of the wild card, in a league with no true dominant teams.  (An argument could be made for the Royals, but their starting pitching isn’t all that stellar, and one might be made for the Blue Jays, but as we are seeing right now, they have hit a couple speed bumps following their hot streak.)  They have their spells of excitement. Winning seven in a row following the All-Star break, sweeping the Angels at home, taking two from the Cubs on the south side, popping off five runs in the first inning, magically having Tyler Saladino, the surprising call-up makes all three outs in an inning with spectacular diving and leaping plays at third. They do just enough to keep the fan from cashing out.  They keep it literally just close enough to still be in it.  That’s the thing about the White Sox.  The club constantly surprises you just when you think you were about to give up hope.  It’s as if they sense when you are about to check and swoop in and surprise you by dropping a juicy 8-burger in Anaheim.  

But the fact that they keep pulling you back in with mini victories isn’t even the worst part.  The fact is that you love her.  An always classy organization, as one would expect from Jerry Reinsdorf, there’s no ethical argument that can be made against her.  You absolutely adore who she used to be, the champion of girlfriends, full of life and character.  But that was a decade ago.  And you hope, you desperately hope that with the couple of brights spots, trying desperately to shine through, that she can recapture that status.  She has the potential.  But the question becomes, when does potential stop being potential and becomes simply the inability to live up to expectations, or just underachievement. So that’s the worst part. She strings you along, giving you hope, keeping you attached.  You love her, and because of her behavior she’s tearing you apart inside.  And you’re hoping, dearly, hoping that you don’t have to walk away.

 

Crosstown Classic Preview: A Clash of Strategies

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As the South Siders head to 1060 W Addison this weekend, with them comes a clash of expectations.  Both teams pursued roster overhauls in the winter, both teams adding new starting pitching as well as some much-needed sources of run support. The Cubs focused their free agency search on a catcher and a starting pitcher. Securing the lefty batting Montero, the second-best pitch framer on the market, and a lefty ace in Lester, as well as re-signing Jason Hammel, the club felt that they had navigated the FA market well. As has been preached and preached though, throughout the Cubs organization, the primary source for talent for the North Siders would be through the farm system.  Bringing Kris Bryant up along with defensive specialist, Addison Russell, and relying on the likes of other young talents like Jorge Soler, Starlin Castro, and an improved Anthony Rizzo, the Cubs appear to be exponentially better a couple weeks into the season, at least, that is how it appeared on paper.  Fans were citing Back to the Future, and this time, letting themselves maybe, just maybe, believe that they wouldn’t have to say “next year” in September.  The White Sox, very busy themselves in the offseason, looked as though they too, would be much better on paper.  Adding the former Cub, Jeff Samardzija to beef up the starting rotation, as well as signing the big bats of Adam LaRoche and Melky Cabrera while also trying to address their greatest weakness, the bullpen, with the additions of Zach Duke and David Robertson, the White Sox appeared to be all-in on spending and winning.  The potential addition of rookie promising prospect hoping to become an ace, Carlos Rodon, tied the picture together with a pretty bow that made fans think…“the ten-year anniversary of their last World Series! It makes nothing but beautiful, poetic sense!”

And now, in perfect dramatic fashion, the two clubs face off immediately prior to the mid-point of the season and the all-star break.  Speaking of, the Cubs will have two members playing, Anthony Rizzo as a first base reserve, and Kris Bryant, starting in the place of Giancarlo Stanton, both of whom will also be competing in the home run Derby the evening prior.  The two young big-batted stars could likely face the White Sox only representative for the game: Chris Sale.  All three selections are well deserving. Sale tied the major league record for eight consecutive starts with double digits strikeouts, and holds a 2.80 ERA and a 7-4 record.  Bryant and Rizzo are the heart of the offensive power in the Cubs lineup.  Bryant, batting .275 has an on base percentage of .381 with 12 HRs and 50 RBIs. Rizzo is threat at every at-bat, with an average .296 and an OBP of .401 with 16 HRs and 48 RBIs.

But at the midpoint, the records and standings reflect the reality of both clubs’ expectations.  The North Siders, at 46-38, are 3rd in the NL Central, the best division in the National League, and hold the second wild card spot by a 3-game lead on the Mets.  Though the team has struggled against the major-league leading and long-time rival Cardinals this season, it appears as though Maddon’s team has a real chance to compete against any team, any given day.  However, the White Sox, with a record of 39-44 are last in the AL Central and third worst in the American League.  Some blame the lack of clarity in the dual leadership front-office, others blame the big, brand new roster, that at times, appears they do all they can to give away close games, and others call for the head of “reluctant manager,” Robin Ventura.

Both offenses struggling as of late, it appears that the series will be a battle of arms.   The matchups are listed below:
Friday 3:05—–Hendricks (3.82, 4-4) v Rodon (4.18, 3-2)

Saturday 3:05-Lester (3.48, 4-7) v Sale (2.8, 7-4)

Sunday 1:20—Arrieta (2.8, 9-5) v Quintana (3.69, 4-8)

It feels as though Sale, when and if he pitches a complete game is unstoppable, and that the White Sox can beat just about anyone, while Lester who started the season struggling, has started to find his stuff for about 5-6 innings an outing.  While Quintana has been decent throughout the season, still battling the lack of run support, his opponent on Sunday, Arrieta, has proven to be the Cubs’ true ace.  So it appears, that if the last two games split, the series will come down to the two young guns in Hendricks and Rodon.  Game 1 would also likely be the day that big bats come into play.  Beyond that, the Cubs have an edge in their bullpen.  The White Sox have struggled in the category for the past two years, while the Cubs have surprised everyone, having one of the best in the game in the first half of the season.

With the reality of the MLB being a near total lack of dominant teams, outside of the Cardinals, and a plethora of fun, exciting baseball thanks to the likes of a crop of young, talented players flowing into the ranks and succeeding, and high-scoring, divisional races throughout both leagues, one could argue that the series is of importance for more than just pride and bar-bragging rights within the city limits for the first season in a number of years.  The South Siders, coming off a surprisingly successful trio of series against the Cardinals, Oriole, and Blue Jays, the White Sox could be beginning to turn things around pre-break in the league while only 5.5 games back of the second wild card spot.  The Cubs however, are looking to gain ground on both the Pirates and Cardinals going into the break, hoping to prove that indeed, “they can only get better.”

Though records and narrative point in opposite directions, the two clubs and their different strategies to overhauls could both still succeed.  Either way, one can be sure that this weekend will be one of the best Crosstown Classics in quite some time.