Like I Said

The White Sox will win with a combination of pitching and hitting. Yesterday, they had pitching, but not enough to avoid a 3-1 loss to the Guardians. With the scored tied at one and one out in the top of the seventh, Dylan Cease gave up two hits to put runners at second and third. As those of us who’ve played enough Strat-O-Matic know, that’s the time to play infield in. You just don’t want the ball to go to your shortstop, if he’s a four. Tim Anderson is a four. Which is to say he misplayed a chopper pretty much hit right at him for an error and a run. For all intents and purposes, game over. Ten straight Sox hitters made outs until two out in the ninth, when pinch-hitter Yoan Moncada singled. Seby Zavala then struck out to end the game. You could also argue the game was pretty much over when the Sox failed to score in the second inning, despite having bases loaded and nobody out. A popup and two strikeouts from the bottom of the order usually won’t cut it, and didn’t here. Oh, well. Manager Pedro Grifol discovered he had Garrett Crochet in the bullpen and actually used him. Crochet retired all three batters he faced, on seven pitches no less. I hope other Sox pitchers were watching.