Royals 4, White Sox 3: You have to take the lead in order to win

Baseball is a frustrating game. Watching the White Sox so far this season has been, to put it lightly, frustrating.

Royals starter Brady Singer entered this afternoon’s game with an 8.86 ERA. After six strong innings against the White Sox, his ERA is down to 7.71. Instead of spraying the field with hits against the getable righty, especially with the wet conditions, combined for five hits and one measly run.

There was a need to make a comeback early for the South Siders, as Michael Massey hit a solo home run to right field in the bottom of the second to make it 1-0, Royals. Chicago answered promptly in the top of the third with back-to-back, two-out hits by back-to-back Andrews. Andrew Benintendi doubled to left field and Andrew Vaughn singled to the same spot to bring him home.

The game would only remain tied until the fourth, when MJ Melendez opened with a single and Nick Pratto drew a one-out walk. Both of these runners would come around to score on a Maikel Garcia double to left field. The inning would end two batters later on a pop out, to keep the score 3-1.

Jackie Bradley Jr. gets a gold star in center field today. He corralled many balls that might have gone for hits to start a rally for the White Sox. Yasmani Grandal gets a Band-Aid after leaving the game with right hamstring tightness.

Enough awards, because a good, old-fashioned, two-out rally would bring the White Sox right back into it in the eighth inning. Things got started with a single by Vaughn, then a pinch-hit single by Carlos Pérez. With runners on first (Jake Marisnick pinch-running) and third, Luis Robert Jr. doubled down the left field line. Marisnick did exactly what he was brought up to do, as his extra speed allowed him to score from first base and tie the game.

But just when you thought, oh, maybe they’ll come back to win this, Reynaldo López entered the game. All he had to do was keep the score where it was at to take it to extras. He clearly did not want to deal with the wet conditions, because he walked the first batter and allowed a one-out single to get the runner to third.

Now how do you think this game ends? On a bunt. Yes, you read that right. With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Freddy Fermin bunted a ball with a safety squeeze to score Nick Pratto with the winning run. If you wanted free baseball, you weren’t meant to have it today.

I won’t even give you the White Sox record after today. It is not good. The weather in Chicago is beautiful today, so go outside and enjoy something that doesn’t involve this losing baseball team.