Six Pack of Stats: Twins 5, White Sox 1

The Chicago White Sox will clinch the playoffs at some point this week, but tonight, they stall and take the loss against the Minnesota Twins.

FanGraphs

The Starts

Lucas Giolito only gave up three hits in the ballgame, but two of the hits hurt him: a solo shot and a two-run shot. However, he pitched six innings, so he did notch a quality start against a thundering lineup. But he also takes the loss.

Jake Odorizzi pitched like he hadn’t been out of baseball for a month, but the blister that formed under his fingernail begged to differ. He pitched through 3 ²⁄₃ innings and left with a 2-1 count to James McCann. Odorizzi struck out three batters and only gave up one run: a José Abreu homer.

Pressure Play

Nomar Mazara, with two on and two out in the second and facing 1.82 LI pressure, hit a weak grounder to the right side to end the inning and squander any chance at scoring.

Pressure Cooker

After an 0-for-2 night with a walk, Eloy Jiménez unexpectedly faced the most pressure (1.23 pLI) during this sleeper of a ballgame for the Sox’s offense.

Top Play

With a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth, Byron Buxton took a ball to center field for a two-run, .174 WPA homer — increasing his team’s lead to 3-0. In a relatively low-scoring ballgame, that was all the Twins needed for their victory.

Game MVP

Cody Stashak came into the game on short notice once Odorizzi left with a blister, but Cody was super prepared. He pitched 2 ¹⁄₃ innings, giving up absolutely nothing, but striking out two. His performance led to a .159 WPA and tonight’s MVP honors.

Magic Number: 1

Although the White Sox lost, the Tigers and Mariners did, too. A win tomorrow will clinch a spot in the playoffs for the South Siders!