Gamethread: White Sox at Athletics

In their first matchup after the All-Star Game, the Chicago White Sox (42-44) will take on the Athletics (50-41) in Oakland. This game marks the beginning of a 10-game road trip for the White Sox, and the first three of those games will be in Oakland.

Iván Nova will start for the White Sox. Nova is having a rough season overall, as evidenced by his 5.58 ERA, 5.25 FIP, 4.76 xFIP, and 0.6 fWAR. However, Nova was excellent in his most recent start. In that game, he pitched 5 ²⁄₃ scoreless innings in the White Sox’s 3-1 win over the Cubs to tie this year’s Crosstown Classic.

Squaring off against Nova will be 34-year-old right-hander Mike Fiers. Fiers has been pretty good in terms of ERA (3.87), but the advanced peripherals (4.75 FIP and 5.42 xFIP) tell a different story. In six career games against the White Sox, Fiers has been difficult to solve. In those games, White Sox hitters have a slash line of .239/.294/.345, and Fiers has a 2.21 ERA. Let’s hope that trend does not continue tonight. Here is the basic Statcast rundown on Fiers:

Here are tonight’s starting lineups:

The White Sox made the following announcement this afternoon:

Interestingly, A.J. Reed is already making his White Sox debut, as he will bat seventh tonight. He has only played in 48 major league games in his career. In those games, Reed has a slash line of .153/.253/.244 with -0.9 fWAR. Let’s hope the change of scenery helps him right the ship.

The game will start at 9:07 CST (gotta love those late starts) and will be televised on NBC Sports Chicago for those who are close enough to Chicago. For the out-of-market folks, MLB Network will televise it. Tune into WGN 720 for radio coverage. Baseball is back, so let’s enjoy it!