Tag: Chicago White Sox

Photo credit: @whitesox

By Matthew Harrington

The Oakland A’s dropped Game 2 of a doubleheader at Guaranteed Rate Field on Friday night, falling to the White Sox 6-4. Pale Hose starter Lucas Giolito began the game strong, then managed to hold on long enough to end the White Sox losing streak at eight. Matt Olson knocked in two runs, going deep once for the Green and Gold.

A’s starter Chris Bassitt got staked to an early lead after Giolito ran into some control problems in the inning. With two outs, the White Sox hurler walked Matt Joyce and Khris Davis. Matt Olson knocked Joyce in with a single for the 1-0 lead before Mark Canha k’d to end the threat.Bled then moved to third on Tim Anderso’s double. They both scored on Omar Narvaez’s base-hit for a 2-1 White Sox edge. Charlie Tilson hit a two-out single to knock in Narvaez for a two-run lead.

Olson pulled the A’s within one in the top of the sixth, blasting his 16th long ball of the year off Giolito’s first pitch of the two-out at-bat. Bassitt couldn’t shut the White Sox down in the bottom of the frame though, exiting the game with runners on first and second with one out. Narvaez singled off reliever Danny Coulombe, but the runner couldn’t advance past third. The next batter, Adam Engel, would knock in both runs for a 5-2 White Sox lead, closing the book on Bassitt with five runs (four earned) over 5 1/3 innings.

The A’s would get two more runs off Giolito in the eighth after White Sox manager Rick Renteria stuck with his young hurler with electric stuff just an inning too long. Dustin Fowler and Marcus Semien singled to open the inning, chasing Giolito from the game with no outs in the inning and eight K’s. Stephen Piscotty walked to load the bases against Jace Fry. Chris Volstad came in to face Davis, who singled in two runners to greet the reliever.

The fourth pitcher of the inning, Xavier Cedeno, managed to coax three consecutive outs from the A’s. He got a line out to short Olson, a Canha punch out and a Chad Pinder forceout to strand the tying run with Davis at third.

Tim Anderson homered for Chicago in the bottom of the inning and Joakim Soria pitched a 1-2-3 9th for his 11th save, punching out two Athletics for the win.

Up Next: Oakland’s Daniel Mengden takes the mound Saturday afternoon from the Windy City in Game 3 of the series at 11:10 am PDT opposing Chicago’s Dylan Covey. Despite the White Sox’s poor record, Covey has been a bright spot, sporting a 2.90 ERA over seven starts.

Photo credit: @athletics_fanly

By Matthew Harrington

While the Oakland A’s surely miss third baseman Matt Chapman in the lineup, the emergence of Franklin Barreto in Game 1 of a Friday doubleheader has softened the blow. Barreto, playing second so Jed Lowrie can shift to third base in Chapman’s absence, collected a career-high six RBIs in the A’s 11-2 win over the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on Friday night.

Barreto hit two homers, the second and third of his career, each with two men on base. Three other Athletics knocked in a run in the Game 1 rout. Starter Sean Manaea (7-6, 3.40 ERA)  fired seven innings for the win, giving up just one earned run while punching out seven. Pale Hose to hand the South Siders their eighth straight win. The A’s touched up White Sox starter James Shields for eight runs, but somehow avoiding seeing his ERA balloon up after all, but two were unearned.

Jonathan Lucroy picked up a sacrifice fly in the top of the second with the bases loaded, then Barreto stepped up to the plate with two runners in scoring position. After working a 2-2 count, Shields grooved a cutter over the heart of the plate that Barreto drove over the bullpen in left field for a 4-0 A’s lead.

Jed Lowrie singled home a run in the fifth, then the White Sox defense fell apart. Khris Davis singled home one run, then Leury Garcia’s gaffe fielding the ball allowed another run to score and Davis to scoot to second base. Matt Olson reached base on Yoan Moncada’s error that pushed Davis to third, then Davis sped home after Shields struck out Mark Canha but saw his pitch sail to the backstop allowing the inning to continue with the A’s up 8-0.

The White Sox scored in the bottom of the sixth off Manaea on an unusual twin killing. With runners at second and third, Jose Abreu came home on Kevan Smith’s bouncer to Lowrie. Matt Davidson decided to leave for third once the throw came to Olson at first, but Olson’s throw got him at third to end the inning with the A’s up 8-1.

Juan Minaya pitched a scoreless two innings in relief before Barreto could touch up Luis Avilan for another three-run bomb in the top of the eighth. This time, Barreto’s shot went well over the bullpen halfway up the bleachers in left field, giving Oakland an 11-1 lead.

Liam Hendriks pitched a perfect eighth, but Josh Lukas gave up an RBI double to Yolmer Sánchez in the ninth before wrapping up the win in Game 1 of the twin bill.

Photo credit: chicagotribune.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

The first game of the Oakland A’s four-game series with the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field was postponed due to a rainstorm in Chicago. The A’s will play a doubleheader on Friday.

The White Sox are experiencing a down year. Under second-year manager, Rick Renteria, they are in fourth-place in the AL Central division with a record of 24-49. The White Sox visited Oakland in April, and they did not fare well as the A’s swept the three-game series. Without a question, the White Sox are in rebuild mode and people are not familiar with many of their young players.

The pitching matchups for the series will feature the A’s Sean Manaea going against the White Sox veteran James Shields in the opener that starts at 1:10 pm PDT on Friday Afternoon. Manaea won his last start against the Angels, and his record is 6-6. Shields’ record is 2-8, but he has given the White Sox innings. Shields has worked at least six innings or more in his last 11 starts, and eight have been arguably quality starts. That means at least six innings of work and no more than three runs allowed.

Chris Bassitt will go for Oakland in the second game, and he will be opposed by Lucas Giolito (4-7, ERA 7.19). Dylan Covey starts for Chicago on Saturday, and the A’s have yet to announce their starter. Daniel Mengden will seek his seventh win of the year and Chicago will counter with lefty Carlos Rodon (0-2, ERA 4.41).

The White Sox offense is led by big Jose Abreu. Abreu is hitting. 281 and has 11 homers and 42 RBIs on his resume. Chicago’s DH is Matt Davidson. Davidson’s batting average is just .231, but he has power as evidenced by his 13 dingers and 32 ribbies. Tim Anderson will play shortstop and Yoan Moncada, obtained from Boston in the trade for Chris Sale, will be at second base. Yolmer Sanchez will also see time at second and may play third, too. The only veteran in the outfield is Avasail Garcia. Garcia has been on the DL for most of the season and has played sparingly. Daniel Palka has been the right fielder for most of the year. Nicky Delmonico is in left field, and Adam Engel, Leury Garcia, Charlie Tillson, and former Athletic Trayce Thompson all have been in center field.

Wellington Castillo has handled most of the catching chores for Chicago. He is backed up by Omar Narvaez and Kevan Smith. The White Sox have three lefties in the bullpen. They are Luis Avilan, Xavier Cedeno, and Jace Fry. The righties out of the pen are Nate Jones (four saves), Juan Minaya, Bruce Rondon, Hector Santiago, and Joakim Soria (10 saves).

The A’s come into the series with a four-game winning streak and are looking to improve their season record. The A’s offense loves to go on the road as they have hit almost twice as many homers on the road and about half as many at home. Many people believe the cold night air and the marine layer that invaded the Coliseum keeps the ball in the park.

The A’s will be without the services of third baseman Matt Chapman, who was hit on his thumb by a pitch. A’s manager Bob Melvin has moved Jed Lowrie over to third base and played Franklin Barreto at second. Barreto rewarded the team with a three-run blast in Wednesday’s game in San Diego. Super-sub Chad Pinder has been stationed in left field as well as third base, shortstop, and second base. Outfielder Matt Joyce, who hits from the left side, may be activated for the weekend series in Chicago. His presence in the lineup gives Melvin the ability to have another left-handed bat in the game against a right pitcher.

The A’s are currently two games over the .500 mark. The pitching rotation has been riddled with injury, but Melvin has been able to juggle his starters and pitchers have been recalled from Nashville to help out. Manaea and Mengden lead the staff win six wins each. However, they are going to need help from Paul Blackburn, Chris Bassitt, and others if they want to improve. Brett Anderson, Trevor Cahill, Daniel Gossett, and Andrew Triggs are all on the DL. All four have started. Cahill and Triggs were effective but have not stayed off the DL. The same goes for Anderson and Gossett.

Hopefully, the A’s will take three out of four from Chicago before moving on the Detroit for four more games. After Detroit, the A’s return home to play three with Cleveland and two with San Diego before going on the road again for another 10-game trip.

Photo credit: @Athletics

Chicago White Sox: 11 | 17 | 0
Oakland Athletics: 12 | 16 | 0
14 innings

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND — When Andrew Triggs took the mound for the Oakland Athletics this afternoon, the team hoped to sweep the Chicago White Sox in their three-game series that had opened on Monday evening. 23 runs, 33 hits, 556 pitches, and five hours and 48 minutes later, Marcus Semien crossed home plate with the winning run, giving the A’s their fourth consecutive triumph, their ninth victory, and their first series sweep of the season. It also brought the team within two games of the Seattle Mariners for third place in the strong American League West.

The game began uneventfully enough and soon settled into a long and boring slug fest, with Oakland on the short end of the stick until the bottom of the eighth.

The White Sox used their speed to take an early lead after Yoán Moncada led off with a single, stole second, and scored on Nicky Delmonico’s single to center. Oakland tied the game in their half of the first when Matt Joyce doubled off Chicago’s starting pitcher, Carson Fulmer, went to third on Marcus Semien’s single, and then Jed Lowrie popped out on a 3-0 offering, scoring on Khris Davis’ grounder to first.

The brief equilibrium between the teams ended in the White Sox’ next turn at bat. With the bases loaded and no outs, Adam Engel, batting all of .188, singled, bringing Leury García in with the tie-breaking run and leaving the bases full. Moncada then deposited a 1-0 delivery by Triggs over the Stanley Tools sign in right field.  Just like that, the A’s trailed 6-1. Three batters later, Danny Coulombe was pitching for the Green and Gold.

The A’s scrambled back into cont ention in the bottom of the frame on Mark Canhas lead-off homer to left and a sacrifice fly by Semien to center that plated Stephen Piscotty. The next man up, Bruce Maxell, walked and eventually reached third, from where he scored even though it looked to first base umpire as if Héctor Sánchez, who had entered the game to pitch for Chicago after the walk to Maxwell, had induced Lowrie to ground into an inning-ending double play. Miller’s call was reversed on an appeal that took 45 seconds to be decided, a brevity that stood out in the context of what was, and continued for a few more innings to be, a v e r y s l o w m o v i n g game.

In the top of the fourth, full count walks to Moncada and Sánchez ended Coulombe’s stint on the mound. Santiago Casilla came in as the third Oakland hurler, and he allowed José Abreu a double on a hard line driven double to left center that both runners and put the White Sox up, 8-4. Davidson singled to left, and it was 9-4.

Oakland came charging back right away. After Sánchez issued a four pitch passport to Joyce, Aaron Bummer relieved his teammate. Lowrie and Davis singled, Davis’s hit driving in Lowrie. Olson doubled, scoring Davis. Right hander Chris Volstad came into pitch to Matt Chapman, who singled Olson home, and it was a one-run game, 9-8. That was the only hit Volstad would allow before being relieved by Danny Farquhar at the end of the seventh.

The game was getting interesting. Chicago tacked on another run in the sixth on singles off Emilio Pagán by Abreu, Delmonico, and Leury García. But it still looked like anyone’s ball game.

And then, bingo! Farquhar took over from Volstad, who, after three and a third strong innings, had done all he could to preserve the Chicago lead. Stephen Piscotty greeted Farquhar with a double to left center and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Maxwell brought him home with a sac fly to right. That was it for the Farquhar.

In came southpaw Luis Avilán. He got Chad Pinder, pinch hitting for Joyce, to fly out to center but walked Semien. Lowrey then planted Avilán’s 3-2 change up behind the Rooted in Oakland sign, 375 feet away in left field. For the first time in the game, the A’s were leading, 10-9.

Melvin called on his closer, Brad Treinin, to give him the three outs Oakland needed to seal an exciting 10-9 victory. Treinin gave him two. Then the two-one punch of a Welington Castillo double and a Tim Anderson single knotted the game up again at ten.
Oakland failed to score in the bottom of the ninth, and the game went into extra innings. Treinin allowed the White Sox two singles but no runs in the 10th and shut them down 1-2-3 in the 11th.

Lou Trivino, who had made his big league debut the night before with a wobbly, but score-free inning of relief, entered the game to start the twelfth. He got out of that pressure chamber with a double and a single but without allowing a run. He didn’t allow anyone to reach base in the 13th or 14th.

Joakin Soria allowed two A’s singles in the 10th, but, like Treinin, escaped without allowing anyone to score. Bruce Rondón got through the 11th in spite of a passed ball by Narváez that allowed Piscotty, who had walked, to reach scoring position with two outs. Rondón also kept Chicago alive through the 12th by striking out Pinder and Semien and getting Lowrie to ground out to second. He also got into trouble but escaped unharmed in the 13th.

It was in the bottom of the 14th that the A’s finally completed their comeback victory. Big game James Shields, now Long Game James Shields made his first relief appearance since 2010 and got both Lucroy and Pinder to fly out to center field. Then he gave up a single to Semien, who proceeded to steal second. This was a pivotal play, since it allowed Shields to pitch around the two subsequent batters without fear of putting a meaningful run on base. And so Shields walked Lowrie and Davis, each on five pitches. This brought Olson to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. Shields got him to swing and miss on an 83 mph change up. His next pitch was a knuckle curve that Olson blasted over Delmonico’s head and against the left field wall. Semien gleefully bounced home, and the longest game of this short season ended with the A’s on top, 12-11.

The well deserved win went to Trivino, who now boasts an immaculate record of 1-0, 0.00. The loss was charged to Shields (1-1, 4.50).

The A’s will have a chance to recuperate tomorrow and part of Friday before they face the Boston Red Sox at the Coliseum at 7:05 pm PT.

Ex-Athletic lefty Drew Pomeranz is expected to come off the Red Sox’ disabled list and make his first appearance of the season, starting for Boston. Kendall Graveman will pitch for the A’s, who hope he can improve his record of 0-3, 9.97.