Tuesday night massacre

For those who might think that the Chicago White Sox “aren’t that far” from Cleveland looking forward to next year (and I will not confirm in this public forum whether I was one such person), allow me to present Exhibit A: Cleveland 11, White Sox 0.

The game was not as close as the score indicates.

Carson Fulmer was the opener tonight, and please, pretty please, just close it. After some spring training uptalk and the offseason-prep bonafides to suggest a different 2019 season for Fulmer, it hasn’t happened. Like Dylan Covey, Fulmer needs to be elsewhere in 2020.

Not that the White Sox can afford to just ship off healthy arms. It’s a severe lack of them that puts the South Siders in the predicament of starting the likes of Covey, Fulmer, Ross Detwiler and (at this sorry stage) Reynaldo López in the last month of the season.

In 2019, Covey, Fulmer, Detwiler, Odrisamer Despaigne, Ervin Santana, Hector Santiago and Manny Bañuelos have started 40 of 156 games, 26% of the season’s starts. That’s a full rotation slot — if the White Sox were running out a four-man rotation!

And it would be different if any of these pitchers seemed worthy of getting even a single start. Covey, Bañuelos and Fulmer did nothing in the spring to merit a rotation slot, or even a spot start. Detwiler? Ballast. Santana? Good lord. Santiago? Friends & Family rate.

Despaigne is the only starter who appeared to merit a shot, because he pitched rather well at Charlotte. But ... one start, OK. Three? Clown shoes.

Don’t blame this s(#& sandwich on injuries, either. Michael Kopech was down and out last July. Dane Dunning was doubtful from 2019’s get-go. Carlos Rodón simply wasn’t that good in 2019 and carries a 4.08 career ERA and 4.25 FIP, so let’s not get too wistful about who he is even at 100% health.

People paid good money to see this slop, many checking in on this very site, from the ballpark, and to a one more eager to talk about ballpark concessions or promotions than the starting pitching.

And now, the bad news: Kopech is back in 2020, but there is no help coming otherwise. Free agency? Gerrit Cole, Madison Bumgarner, Hyun-Jin Ryu? Suuuuure. Zack Wheeler, Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson? Yeah, more the White Sox’s speed, and even then probably too pricey. Rick Porcello, Tyson Ross, Iván Nova? NAILED IT.

So yeah, there was a ballgame tonight, and the White Sox’s hopes in it began to flatline from the third batter of the ballgame.

Let’s spare the drill-down of dreary details, and simply say that Fulmer and Santiago were horrible. And the South Side bat discipline? Horrid again, with 14 Ks against a single walk (bless you, Zack Collins, whiffing once but 2-for-3 with a free pass to offset).

In terms of good news ...

... oh, yeah, in good news, Tim Anderson went 1-for-3 and crossed the plate appearance threshold to officially qualify for the batting title. And what ho, at .334 he just happens to lead the majors in hitting.

There’s a game tomorrow, it’s Detwiler vs. All-Star Shane Bieber, so you can pretty much imagine how that one’s gonna go. Sorry Hamster, it’s all yours.

Oh, before I forget, Hamster has taken to polling in gamers, right?

OK, SSS, here ya go: