Friday’s opener against the Tribe was tight all throughout as pitchers Carlos Rodon and Shane Bieber were locked in a pitcher’s duel. Both pitchers ran into some jams throughout the game but were able to dance out of danger. In the end, the White Sox edge out the Indians to take game 1 of the series.
Game 1 Recap: White Sox Edge Out The Indians
Since coming back from injury, White Sox pitcher Carlos Rodon has been on fire. Over last seven games, he has a 2-1 record with a 2.06 ERA with 39 strikeouts. He showed no slowing down in his start against Cleveland. Rodon went eight innings allowing just four hits with five strikeouts and only two walks. After the eight innings pitched he threw a total of 106 pitches, with 69 of those being strikes. This was another great scoreless outing for Rodon.
Indians’ starter Shane Bieber also took it to the White Sox hitters. Bieber pitched 6.2 innings giving up only three hits and allowing two walks. Bieber did not allow any runs and struck out eight Sox hitters. Bieber also finished the night with 106 pitches, with 74 of them being for strikes.
After Jace Fry got Jason Kipnis to pop out with runners on first and second, it was the White Sox turn to bat in the ninth. After a previously disappointing night for Palka, in which he struck out three times, he was leading off against Neil Ramírez.
On a 1-2 count, Palka went opposite field to walk-off a 1-0 victory for Chicago. It was Palka’s 18th on the season. Another solid performance from the White Sox came from second baseman Yoan Moncada. Yoan went 1-2 with a double and a walk. So, the White Sox edge out the Indians 1-0 in a great pitchers duel.
Looking Ahead
Looking ahead at game two, the Cleveland Indians will send right-handed pitcher Trevor Bauer to the mound to face James Shields.
Shields has had a rough 2018, his record sits at 4-13. He has a 4.50 ERA and 118 strikeouts on the season. Bauer, on the other hand, has had a tremendous season. His record sits at 11-6 with a 2.25 ERA and 206 strikeouts. His 206 strikeouts put him just one behind AL leader Chris Sale.
Both Jose Abreu and Avisail have had good performances against Bauer in the past. Abreu is hitting .300 with three RBI’s in 40 at-bats against Bauer. Avi is hitting .333 with one homer and three RBIs in 24 at-bats against Bauer.
On Sunday for game 3, the White Sox will have Dylan Covey on the mound to face off against the Indians’ Carlos Carrasco. Carrasco is also having a strong season, posting a .369 ERA with 146 strikeouts. Covey had a strong start to the season but has since struggled. He has an ERA up at 5.58 with 56 strikeouts.
Covey is known to be really tough early in games but struggles past the fourth inning. Over his last seven starts, Covey has a 1-6 record with a hefty 8.31 ERA. He will look to rebound and have better success the second time through the order on Sunday.
Will the White Sox edge out the Indians in the rest of the series? The White Sox have a tough task for the next two games going up against Bauer and Carrasco. The White Sox will definitely need more offense than in game 1 and some better starts from Shields and Covey.
Down On The Farm
On Friday night, the Charlotte Knights played the Rochester Red Wings. White Sox prospect Jordan Guerrero continued his impressive run in Triple-A. Guerrero went six innings giving up only two runs, with only one being an earned run. He struck out seven with only one walk.
In the 8-2 victory over Rochester, Charlie Tilson had a strong impact on the game. He went 2/5 with three RBIs. Catcher Seby Zavala also had a good game. Zavala went three for five with an RBI.
White Sox top prospect Eloy Jimenez played left field. He finished the game with 1/5 with a double. This dropped his batting average to .364.
On Friday another top prospect Luis Robert also had a good night. He went 2/3 with a walk and one strikeout. The Winston Salem Dash would go on to win the 5-4 against the Potomac Nationals. Outfield prospect Blake Rutherford also had a good game, going 1/3 with a walk.
Blake Battenfield started for the Dash. He went seven innings giving up four runs on six hits and walked one. He had four strikeouts and got the win improving his record to 5-2.
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