Week 18 Record: 1-5 (42-75 Overall), 4th in AL Central
Coming off a sweep of the Rays, the White Sox had a tough task this week against the Yankees and Indians. The result? A 1-5 week with some good and some bad baseball games.
Weekly Score Update
Game 112: White Sox 0, Yankees 7 | Box Score
Game 113: White Sox 3, Yankees 4 | Box Score
Game 114: White Sox 3, Yankees 7 | Box Score
Game 115: White Sox 1, Indians 0 | Box Score
Game 116: White Sox 1, Indians 3 | Box Score
Game 117: White Sox 7, Indians 9 | Box Score
This Week by the Numbers
3 – Number of Home Runs Adam Engel robbed this week
1.89 – Michael Kopech’s ERA in his last 6 starts
26/56 – Eloy Jimenez’s BB/K Ratio this season
0.00 – Matt Davidson’s ERA in 3 appearances this season
5 – Number of Home Runs Daniel Palka has hit in the ninth inning this season
0 – Number of times I’ve worried about Yoan Moncada this week
Quote of the Week: White Sox Win Senior RBI World Series
It’s huge for the program. The White Sox do an amazing job of supporting these kids. They do an amazing job of putting resources into them so that they can be as successful as possible. So it’s huge, and kind of our way to say thank you for all of that. We really appreciate the things that go into this.”
– White Sox’ RBI Head Coach Marcus Rodgers
This is a really cool program that Major League Baseball partakes in. The White Sox usually have pretty successful teams in this program, but most important is the impact this has on the community. Great to see!
Question of the Week: Sinking Covey Cruiser?
After a string of excellent starts back in June and July, White Sox fans began to have the discussion of whether or not Dylan Covey was a legitimate long-term rotation piece. However, since his masterpiece of 8.1 innings of work against Seattle, Covey is 0-4 with a 10.00 ERA and a .342 Batting Average Against. These are not exactly stellar numbers.
So, I had questions for White Sox Nation: Did you ever believe Dylan Covey could be a long-term rotation piece? And do you currently believe he can be?
12%: Yes/Yes
25%: Yes/No
11%: No/Yes
52%: No/No
I expect the results to be similar to this. You either believed in Covey or you didn’t, but I think most fans have accepted that the original hype around Covey has faded.
I wrote about Dylan Covey in this article back at the beginning of his run, and I expressed cautious optimism in the performances he had been turning in. The sinker is clearly his best pitch, but his numbers showed he was getting away with a lot of bad pitches. In addition, we’ve seen a new issue arise: the second time through the order is much worse for Covey.
Flaws like these make it much more likely that he is destined for the bullpen – as many fans have mentioned, his stuff is really good for a multi-inning guy before the opposing team turns the lineup over for a second time against him.
Is it time to give up on Covey? Not at all – but at this point, he is no longer pitching well enough to justify keeping his rotation spot over another top prospect. If Kopech comes up anytime soon, it will most likely be in Covey’s spot, with a move to the bullpen in order.
Player/Moment of the Week
Thanks to everyone who voted! In what was a rough week for White Sox baseball, Adam Engel stole the show. Though he only hit .250 this week, Engel turned in a 3-4 performance on Sunday, and most importantly, robbed THREE home runs over the course of the week. These performance were good enough to net him Player (46%) and Moment (51%) of the Week honors!
The Week Ahead: More AL Central Action
Monday: Reynaldo Lopez (4-9, 4.30 ERA) @ DET Artie Lewicki (0-2, 4.76 ERA), 6:10 CT
Tuesday: Lucas Giolito (7-9, 6.23 ERA) @ DET Blaine Hardy (4-4, 3.63 ERA), 6:10 PM CT
Wednesday: Carlos Rodon (3-3, 2.61 ERA) @ DET Jordan Zimmerman (5-4, 3.98 ERA), 12:10 CT
Thursday: OFF DAY
Friday-Sunday: Series vs. KC Royals… Starters TBD
Enjoy the Week, White Sox Fans!
Featured Photo courtesy of our very own @b_son4