Ross Detwiler was solid, but was haunted by an inconsistent defense behind him. The offense couldn’t muster up much against Jake Odorizzi while the Twins slugged their way to an 8-2 victory. The White Sox are now 60-72.
W: Jake Odorizzi (14-6) L: Ross Detwiler (2-4)
The Good
Jimmy Cordero: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
Tim Anderson: 2-for-4, 100th career double
Jose Abreu: 2-for-4, sixth consecutive season with 30+ doubles
The Bad
Hitting with RISP: 1-for-11, 8 LOB
Jace Fry: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 2 HR
Moment of the Game
The moment of the game in such a terrible game had nothing to do with the players on the field. In fact, it had to do with a fan after Yoan Moncada was called out on strikes on a bad call late in the game. The fan yelled, “HEY UMP, CHECK YOUR VOICEMAIL, YOU MISSED A FEW CALLS!” If you can make me chuckle in the eighth inning of a blowout, you deserve the Moment of the Game Award. Congrats, random fan.
Stats On 35th: Let’s Break this one down By the Number
Tonight’s Numbers:
7.0/-32.8, 0.190, 30, 24, 0.350
7.0/-32.8
Tonight’s MVP and LVP, in terms of Win Probability Added (WPA) are Jose Abreu (7.0%) and Ross Detwiler (-32.8%). Neither of these are surprises, as Jose Abreu drove in the first run of the game, while Ross Detwiler struggled with the long ball in four innings of work. To be fair, his defense didn’t help him too much.
0.190
The second inning was not kind to Ross Detwiler. Eddie Rosario popped a ball up to lead off the inning. The ball had an expected batting average (xBA) of just 0.190, but Tim Anderson could not make the play, even as he called for the ball. This left the door open for Jonathan Schoop’s three-run homer later in the inning that proved to be costly.
30
With his first inning double, Jose Abreu reached 30 doubles for the sixth consecutive season. This is the longest streak in White Sox history, passing Magglio Ordonez’s previous streak of five consecutive seasons with 30+ doubles. Congratulations to Mr. Jose Abreu!
24
Tonight’s game was not Tim Anderson’s strongest one in the field. He committed two errors – three if you count the missed pop up – to bring his season total to 24 errors. While Anderson has been incredible with the bat and has shown the ability to make the tough plays, his fundamentals haven’t been very crisp this year. This will absolutely be something for Tim to improve on heading into the 2020 season.
100
Tim Anderson, despite the rough defensive numbers outlined above, has been on a tear at the plate. With an eighth inning double, he reached the 100 double mark for his career. Congratulations to Tim!
The Game Ahead: “Cease” the Losing Streak – Salvage the Finale
Dylan Cease (3-6, 5.76 ERA) vs. Jose Berrios (10-7, 3.53 ERA), 1:10 PM CT
Player of the Game
Lucas Giolito reclaimed sole possession of first yesterday. Will Jose rejoin him tonight? VOTE!
For the record, Tim Anderson was “credited'” with one official error in the game along with the botched pop-up in the second inning. His poor defense contributed to four Twins runs, 3 in the second along with his miscue of a double play grounder in the next frame that should have ended the inning. If this persists, Anderson’s monicker of T7 might change to E6!
Anderson’s defense has regressed in 2019, especially in regards to routine plays after showing incremental improvement earlier in his career. The White Sox may have an opportunity to rectify this problem in the offseason while also acquiring a much needed left-handed bat to help balance off a batting order that leans right-handed going forward. While the upcoming free agent class seems devoid of any solid left-handed hitters at a White Sox position of need (RF?) the best bat does belong to pending Yankee FA shortstop Didi Gregorius who might also provide a defensive upgrade over Anderson. If the Yankees don’t issue a QO to Gregorius, the White Sox may be wise in trying to sign him while moving Anderson to the outfield.
In spite of his defensive inconsistency, Anderson still provides the White Sox with an electric bat, much needed speed on the bases and a bravado attitude that would remain welcome attributes in the White Sox quest of becoming perennial contenders starting next season. Anderson would seem to have the necessary athleticism to play either CF or RF with top White Sox prospect Luis Robert also well suited for either position.
If the Yankees do offer a QO to Gregorius the White Sox would likely pass on him and pursue their left-handed bat via the trade route, probably targeting a right-fielder. At the top of my wish list would be Dodgers OF Alex Verdugo who has a cannon arm to man RF along with giving the White Sox yet another high contact bat going forward to team with future core pieces Nick Madrigal and Andrew Vaughn. In this scenario, the White Sox would offer Anderson one more chance to improve his defense alongside future Gold Glove 2B Madrigal while also monitoring the hitting progress of their top SS prospect Yolbert Sanchez who they recently signed as an international FA out of Cuba and is said to already have an MLB ready glove at the position. Sanchez is already 22 years old and was a former teammate of Robert in Cuba. Sanchez flashed some hitting acumen in his DSL debut and if that continues through next season in the states he could be ready for prime time as soon as 2021.