Gamethread: White Sox at Royals

The White Sox are fresh off of a of a 5-3 victory against the Royals, and have a new swagger now that slugger Eloy Jiménez is back in the lineup. Last night’s win wouldn’t have been possible without the 24-year-old Jimenez, as his “Gold Glove” defense and his bat (mainly his three-run dinger in the top of the eighth inning) helped the Sox get to their 60^th win of the season.

Jiménez brings back a powerful stick that was missing from the lineup since the beginning of the year due to a ruptured left pectoral tendon in spring training. He’s only played two games so far, but it looks like his injury has healed nicely. Whether he plays left field every day, on the other hand, is a discussion for another day. Maybe tomorrow, because Eloy is at DH tonight.

The lineup is filling out nicely with the return of Jimenez. With the trade deadline looming and the very close return of center fielder Luis Robert, the team could look more powerful than they did during spring training. The fans just ask that everyone stays healthy – especially if Rick Hahn sends the farm away by tomorrow for some pitching relief and a second baseman.

Lucas Giolito is on the bump for the Sox. Giolito is coming off of a quality start against the Milwaukee Brewers, with six innings pitched, one run, and three strikeouts — a little low on the K’s, but no cause for concern. On the season, Giolito is 8-7 with a 3.78 ERA and 136 strikeouts. Chicago’s ace has had a fair amount of success against this Royals lineup. The two Royals to watch out for are Salvador Perez and Andrew Benintendi. Perez has two long balls against Giolito, and Benintendi has a .333 average in 15 at-bats against the right-hander.

Chicago’s lineup is looking stronger every day. Jiménez sits the 4-spot. Adam Engel is back in the lineup at No. 2 and in right field. Leury García hits seventh — he is currently batting .500 in two at-bats against Kris Bubic. Let’s hope that average just keeps going up!

Bubic is pitching for the Royals tonight. He is 3-4, with a 4.72 ERA and 57 strikeouts. His last and only start against the White Sox came in early May. He went 5 ²⁄₃ innings, gave up one hit and struck out two. Tim Anderson is batting a .444 against Bubic over his career. Let’s hope Anderson continues that tonight.

Here’s what the Royals bring to the plate:

The game starts at 7:10 p.m. CST. NBCSCH will have coverage, along with ESPN 1000. MLB.TV will have the game for its subscribers.

So sit back, relax, and say “Hi Mom” for a White Sox winner!