South Side Sox Player of the Week (August 14-20): Johnny Cueto

Pour yourself a glass and reminisce over one of this season’s shining moments: the deadly duel between Shane Bieber and Johnny Cueto.

Last week, Cueto powered through 8 ²⁄₃ innings, throwing 113 pitches to clinch a shutout victory over Bieber’s Guardians. If the 36-year-old Dominican looks like he’s still in his prime, well, he is. This marks Cueto’s 10th quality start in a row, a terrific feat that earned him AL Pitcher of the Week honors.

It’s fitting that much of this season — the complete opposite of 2021 in both energy and performance — should be carried (or dragged along) by Sox newcomers like Cueto. In that same shutout victory, hot-off-the-presses Elvis Andrus notched his first hit, stolen base, and run in a Sox uniform.

These players were meant to be band-aids for the bruised White Sox. They may end up being much more.

Johnny Cueto has fired up the clubhouse by treating every start like a playoff game. He backs up his double-down attitude with performance. His win-loss column won’t reflect it, but he’s put together a career season.

And don’t worry, he’s not finished yet: September yawns ahead, and the playoff race begins.

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2022 South Side Sox Players of the Week

Tim Anderson (April 8-17)
Tanner Banks (April 18-23)
Lucas Giolito (April 24-May 1)
Dylan Cease (May 2-8)
Michael Kopech (May 9-14)
Davis Martin (May 15-21)
Jake Burger (May 22-29)
Andrew Vaughn (May 30-June 5)
Jake Burger (June 6-12)
Johnny Cueto (June 13-18)
Andrew Vaughn (June 19-25)
Dylan Cease (June 26-July 2)
Lucas Giolito (July 3-9)
Dylan Cease (July 10-17) (no art/essay)
AJ Pollock (July 22-30)
Eloy Jiménez (July 31-August 6)
Michael Kopech (August 7-13)
Johnny Cueto (August 14-20)

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MVP Standings

Dylan Cease (124.4)
Johnny Cueto (89.0)
Michael Kopech (71.1)
Andrew Vaughn (50.2)
José Abreu (26.1)
Luis Robert (25.5)
Lucas Giolito (23.9)
Jake Burger (19.4)
Tanner Banks (18.0)
Eloy Jiménez (15.2)

Cold Cat Standings

Tony La Russa (-80.3)
Leury García (-64.1)
Yasmani Grandal (-46.8)
Josh Harrison (-44.6)
Yoán Moncada (-33.4)
Kendall Graveman (-30.6)
Liam Hendriks (-27.8)
Tim Anderson (-23.8)
Joe Kelly (-22.4)
Gavin Sheets (-18.7)

It’s a Cease-Cueto race for MVP this year, with no position players making much of a dent.

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Writer Standings

Indianapolis Field Office, O’Keefe and Resis, still holding it down. It should probably get better before season’s end, but Kristina currently may be at a two-year worst winning percentage at SSS.

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If you’re interested in seeing more of Mitch’s work, or if you’d like to purchase original drawings or prints, contact him via Twitter (@soxsketcher), Instagram (@southsidesharpie), or by e-mail at southsidesharpie@gmail.com. Thanks for supporting local artists!