Gamethread: White Sox at Royals

After a victory over a strong Brewers squad (58-42), the White Sox (59-40) are back in action tonight against the Royals (42-55).

Though it has not been a season to remember for the Royals, they have won five consecutive games entering tonight. This matches their longest winning streak of the season, as they have won five in a row three times but have not reached six. The Royals will try to enter uncharted territory by winning their sixth consecutive game for the first time this season.

Mike Minor, a left-hander, will be the starting pitcher for the Royals. Minor enters with a 5.45 ERA, but luck has not been on his side. Minor’s peripherals indicate that he is better than his ERA shows (4.50 xERA, 4.21 FIP, 1.7 fWAR).

Dallas Keuchel, another left-hander, will start for the White Sox. Keuchel’s stats are essentially the inverse of Minor’s stats. While Keuchel’s ERA of 4.22 is decent, the peripherals indicate that luck has been on his side (5.50 xERA, 4.71 FIP, 0.8 fWAR).

Here are tonight’s starting lineups:

Earlier, the White Sox made the following announcement:

That’s right, dear readers. Eloy Jiménez is back!

Jake Burger, one of the more inspirational stories in recent memory, was sent down to Charlotte to make room for Eloy. Though he is no longer in the majors, Burger’s performance with the White Sox was strong (.263/.333/.474, 122 wRC+, 0.3 fWAR in 15 games). Best of luck to Burger, and of course best of luck to Jiménez. White Sox fans are thrilled to see him in the starting lineup again, as they should be.

Tonight’s game will start at 7:10 p.m. CST. As usual, it will be on NBC Sports Chicago, and WMVP 1000 AM will have the radio coverage. Time to get victory No. 60.