The White Sox had just enough in the tank to hang on and earn the victory over a tough Kansas City team. An early 3-run homer by Adam Engel led to the only runs scored by the Sox, and the bullpen was lights out. Dallas Keuchel improved to 2-0 on the year, despite not having his best stuff. Luckily, the Royals led the league last year in ground ball hitting, and Keuchel is a ground ball pitcher. Chicago improves to 3-4 on the season, setting up a chance to win their first series of 2020, with a victory tomorrow.
W: Dallas Keuchel (2-0) | L: Kris Bubic (0-1) | S: Alex Colome (1)
Notable Performances
Nick Madrigal: 0-for-3
Despite the win, the biggest White Sox news of the day was regarding the promotion of prospect Nick Madrigal. Though he did not get the elusive first hit, he did reach base on a throwing error before being gunned down at home by Alex Gordon.
Tim Anderson: 2-for-3
No one hates the Royals more than Tim Anderson. Therefore, no one likes to beat up on the Royals more than Tim Anderson. Batting .333, he got the offense off to a hot start with a leadoff double to start the game and followed that up with another base knock. However, TA would leave the game early with hip soreness. Rick Renteria said he was day-to-day and will be reevaluated tomorrow morning.
James McCann: 1-for-2, 2 HBP, run
We were wondering if any beef would carry over from last year’s Sox/Royals rivalry to this year, and it sure didn’t go away. Royals starting pitcher Kris Bubic hit James McCann in his first two at-bats. The first came off the catcher’s helmet and the second got his hands. A gutsy performance by McCann to head to first base and remain in the game at catcher.
Adam Engel: 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
Adam Engel’s approach at the plate has been fantastic to start the season. That continued tonight as he belted a three-run shot, the only runs scored by the White Sox all game.
Moment of the Game
Adam Engel’s three-run homer proved to be the difference-maker. While we would have liked to have seen more from this potent Sox lineup, they managed to get the job done regardless.
Player of the Game: White Sox Bullpen
The Sox bullpen is off to an unbelievable start in 2020. Dallas Keuchel was not nearly as sharp as he was last Saturday against Minnesota, but the bullpen backed him up and closed the game down. Jimmy Cordero and Evan Marshall combined pitched from the 6th through the 8th before Alex Colome came in to close the game down. Through six games, the Sox bullpen has allowed no runs, while racking up 14 strikeouts in 13 innings of work.
Looking Ahead
The White Sox are back in action tomorrow as Gio Gonzalez gets set to face off against Ronald Bolanos. This will be Gonzalez’s first start as a member of the White Sox, and the game provides a chance to get not only reach .500 but earn the first series win of 2020.
One other thing to watch for is Tim Anderson’s availability. If he’s still out with hip soreness, we’ll likely see Leury Garcia get the nod.
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