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[Apologies to Ashley and SSS, somehow edited this but didn’t publish it last night.]
Another night and another win for the Chicago White Sox against the Kansas City Royals! Good teams secure these wins over the bad teams, and it is incredibly refreshing to witness the White Sox being a good team and consistently punishing bad teams.
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The Starts
Dane Dunning continued to roll, but he did face a few bumps in the road. He pitched 4 2⁄3 innings, where he gave up three runs off of five hits. His stuff is there, and he kept the damage down. But those four walks were the foundation of tonight’s trouble. He’s still stretching out, but Dunning should be reaching that six-inning marker soon, provided he reduces those walks. Regardless, his demeanor and pitches are absolutely admirable coming from a rookie.
Brady Singer pitched exactly one extra inning more than Dunning. However, he gave up 10 hits and a walk, amazingly keeping the damage to four runs considering all those hits. As predicted, the Sox were able to do a bit more against Singer this time, leading to their eventual victory.
Pressure Play
In the bottom of the fourth, Hunter Dozier came up to the plate with the bases loaded against Dunning. With two outs and the game tied 3-3, Dozier had a chance to break open the game and put his team on top. Instead, he produced a 3.27 LI ground out to end the inning and bail out Dunning.
Pressure Cooker
Ryan McBroom has three pinch-hit home runs for the Royals this year, which is a single-season record for KC. With two outs in the ninth, McBroom could not find his fourth home run, one that would have tied that game, failing under 1.77 pLI.
Top Play
José Abreu has been hitting everything in sight, and it has been a pleasure to watch. With runners on first and second in the sixth with two outs, Pito hit a .202 WPA-lined double to center, scoring both runners and extending the Sox’s lead to 6-3.
Game MVP
Aldalberto Mondesi had himself a night and takes home tonight’s MVP honors. Going 3-for-4, Mondesi saw the ball very well and was rewarded with two RBIs and .251 WPA.
Magic Number: 13
The White Sox win on the road more than they do at home. Tonight, they reached lucky No. 13 in road victories in 2020. They are 13-6 away and 11-9 at home. Most importantly, Chicago has a winning record no matter where the play, a hallmark of a winning ball club.