White Sox surprise with 3-game sweep of Rays

Is the Tommy Pham effect real?

The White Sox added the 36-year-old mercurial outfielder to their 26-man roster on Friday, and within 72 hours, they doubled their season win total.

The Sox are now 6-22 after a three-game weekend sweep of the Tampa Bay Rays.

Pham was solid, but not spectacular, going 5 for 14 with five singles and three runs scored in the three victories.

Here's a look back at the weekend that was:

April 26

White Sox 9, Rays 4: The long-awaited offensive breakout came in the back half of this game as the Sox pounded out 12 hits. They scored seven of their nine runs from the sixth inning on to give their beleaguered pitching staff some much-needed breathing room.

Martin Maldonado, of all people, hit a 3-run homer in the seventh inning as part of a 2-for-4 performance. Eloy Jimenez added his third home run of the season, a 2-run shot in the seventh. Nicky Lopez, Pham, Danny Mendick and Paul DeJong also had two-hit games.

Chris Flexen (1-3) tossed five-plus shutout innings to pick up his first win of the season. Five Sox relievers were needed to cover the last four innings. They gave up four runs during that stretch, so it was a blessing that the offense poured it on.

April 27

White Sox 8, Rays 7 (10 innings): Left fielder Andrew Benintendi entered Saturday's action batting .169 with no home runs and four RBIs. By the time the evening was over, he had raised his average 22 points, and he had two home runs.

Benintendi's 2-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10th inning was part of a six-RBI night for the struggling veteran. After the Sox fell behind 3-0 early. Benintendi's 3-run homer in the fourth tied it up. He added a wind-blown RBI single in fifth before his game-winning blast off Tampa reliever Phil Maton in extra innings.

The Sox once again burned through six pitchers, but hey, a 10-hit attack and a big night from one of the team's highest-paid veterans covered up some other problems.

April 28

White Sox 4, Rays 2: Erick Fedde for Sox All-Star-representative? The right-hander turned in the best outing of any Sox starting pitcher this season, going 8.1 innings.

He allowed two earned runs on seven hits, striking out nine and walking none. Fedde improved to 2-0 in six starts this season. He's the first Sox pitcher with more than one win, and the fact that he doesn't have a loss while pitching on this team is notable. 

Over his past two starts, Fedde has fanned 20 batters and walked nobody. His season ERA is 2.60.

The Sox got two runs in the fifth on RBI singles from Robbie Grossman and Mendick. Benintendi added a two-run single in the bottom of the eighth to put the Sox ahead, 4-1. He now has a team-best 12 RBIs. What a difference two days makes, huh?

The insurance was needed as Fedde tired in the ninth. After retiring the first batter, he gave up a single and an RBI double. With the score 4-2, Jordan Leasure relieved and got the final two outs for his first career save.

The Sox collected their first three-game series sweep since June 2-4, 2023, against the Detroit Tigers. Next up, a three-game home series against the Minnesota Twins, who swept the Sox in four games in Minneapolis last week.

Series openers unkind to pathetic White Sox

The White Sox have been shut out in eight of their first 22 games this season. That's a Major League Baseball record for futility.

If you've been following the media coverage of this pathetic team, you probably heard that stat in the wake of Monday's 7-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins.

But there's another pattern emerging here:

• March 28, 1-0 loss vs. Detroit
• April 1, 9-0 loss vs. Atlanta
• April 8, 4-0 loss at Cleveland
• April 15, 2-0 loss vs. Kansas City
• April 19, 7-0 loss at Philadelphia
• April 22, 7-0 loss at Minnesota

What do these games have in common? They were all the first game of a series.

The Sox have played eight series so far in 2024. They've been shut out in six of the eight openers. What about the other two, you ask?

• April 4, 10-1 loss at Kansas City
• April 12, 11-1 loss vs. Cincinnati

Add it all up, and the Sox are 0-8 in the first game of a series. They have been outscored in those eight games, 51-2.

That almost seems made up, doesn't it? Are these guys even prepared to play when a new series begins?

The Sox are 3-19. There are 140 more games of this crap remaining.

Jonathan Cannon's debut also a success; Sox split doubleheader

The White Sox did not win Jonathan Cannon's first major-league start, but the rookie right-hander can say he did his job.

Cannon worked five innings in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, allowing only one earned run on three hits. He struck out three and walked one, and he left the game with a 2-1 lead.

Alas, the Sox bullpen happened, and the Royals rallied for a 4-2 victory.

The run Cannon allowed was not his fault. He retired the first two batters in the top of the second inning, including his first career strikeout, which came against Salvador Perez.

Alas, center fielder Dominic Fletcher slipped and fell on what should have been a routine flyout off the bat of Nelson Velasquez, who made second base on the "double" and scored on a single by Adam Frazier.

Fortunately, the Kansas City lead didn't last. Paul DeJong's third home run of the season, a two-run shot, gave the Sox a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the second.

The score stayed there until the eighth inning, when Perez connected for a two-run homer on a middle-middle fastball from Michael Kopech (0-2) to put the Royals ahead to stay at 3-2.

Hunter Renfroe added a solo home run for Kansas City in the ninth, and the Sox were toast.

The loss not only wasted Cannon's start, but it also ruined DeJong's best game in a Sox uniform. The shortstop went 3 for 3 with the aforementioned homer, a single, a double and a walk.

Game 2 goes to Sox

We have a surprise for you! The Sox won Game 2!

This time, two runs was enough. The Sox got a strong starting pitching performance from Erick Fedde in a 2-1 victory.

Fedde (1-0) allowed no runs on three hits over 5.2 innings. He struck out five and walked three.

The Sox got a run in the fourth after Andrew Vaughn doubled and scored on a single by Fletcher. Gavin Sheets hit his third home run of the season in the sixth inning for a 2-0 lead, and this time, the bullpen made it stick.

Tanner Banks allowed an unearned run in the seventh, but Deivi Garcia got six outs for his first save of the season.

The Sox are 3-15. There are 144 more games of this crap remaining.

Nick Nastrini makes solid White Sox debut, loses anyway

Here's some positive White Sox news for a change: Rookie right-hander Nick Nastrini had an encouraging big-league debut on Monday night.

Nastrini retired the first 11 Kansas City Royals batters he saw. He got his first career strikeout out of the way quickly, as he fanned Bobby Witt Jr. for the second out in the top of the first inning.

Unfortunately for Nastrini, he gave up a solo home run to Vinnie Pasquantino with two outs in the top of the fourth inning to fall behind 1-0. The game was essentially over at that moment, since the incompetent Sox position players are incapable of scoring runs.

Sure enough, the Royals went on to defeat the Sox, 2-0.

Final line for Nastrini: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 5 Ks, 2 BBs

You will take that every time from a rookie starter.

However, the Sox have now been shut out six times in their first 16 games this season. They managed only four hits (all singles) and six total baserunners against Kansas City starter Seth Lugo (3-0) and two relievers.

Really, the only reason to follow the Sox this year is to see what kind of records they will set for futility. The Sox are 2-14. There are 146 more games of this crap remaining.

It's not Gavin Sheets' fault

Gavin Sheets went 3 for 5 with two doubles, a home run and five RBIs on Wednesday night.

The White Sox still lost, 7-6, in 10 innings to the Cleveland Guardians.

That's because the Sox only went 3 for 15 with runners in scoring position. All three of those hits were by Sheets, including a 3-run homer in the top of the third inning that put the Sox ahead 5-0.

But for the second straight night, the Sox blew a five-run lead. On Tuesday, they were able to overcome that and win anyway.

On Wednesday, the game went extra innings. The Sox took a 6-5 lead in the 10th on an RBI double by ... Sheets, of course. 

Sheets got to third with one out on a sacrifice bunt by Kevin Pillar, but Andrew Benintendi and Martin Maldonado both struck out.

For some reason, manager Pedro Grifol summoned washed-up veteran Bryan Shaw to try to protect the one-run lead. Naturally, Shaw allowed the ghost runner to score, plus one more, and lost the game. Typical.

The Sox are 2-10. Only 150 more games of this crap to go.

Yoan Moncada injured in White Sox win at Cleveland

Yoan Moncada (right)

During spring training, White Sox designated hitter Eloy Jimenez said his goal was to play 150 games during the 2024 season, alongside teammates Yoan Moncada and Luis Robert Jr.

That's not looking possible right now. Only 11 games into the season, Jimenez and Robert are already on the injured list, and Moncada is almost certainly heading there after suffering an adductor strain during Tuesday's 7-5 victory over the Cleveland Guardians.

Moncada was ... wait for it ... running to first base in the second inning after hitting a grounder to the left side of the infield. He went down as if he were shot about halfway down the line and rolled around in agony.

After the game, manager Pedro Grifol described Moncada as being in "severe pain" on the field. He added that more would be known tomorrow after the injury is evaluated.

Reports indicate the Sox will call up outfielder Oscar Colas to take Moncada's spot on the roster ahead of Wednesday's series finale in Cleveland.

Two of the top prospects in the Sox farm system are infielders -- shortstop Colson Montgomery and third baseman Bryan Ramos. However, neither is ready for the majors, and the Sox are wisely resisting the temptation to call them up prematurely.

Montgomery, who is at Triple-A Charlotte, and Ramos, who is at Double-A Birmingham, should be allowed to continue their development in the minor leagues. They should be called up when they are ready for the big leagues. They should NOT be called up to solve a crisis in Chicago.

As for the game, the Sox scored five runs in the top of the first inning, but starting pitcher Michael Soroka couldn't hold it. The Guardians tied the score at 5 in the bottom of the fourth inning.

That's where the score stayed until the top of the eighth, when Dominic Fletcher delivered a two-run double to put the Sox ahead 7-5.

Michael Kopech took it from there, firing two scoreless innings of relief for his second save of the season. The right-hander retired all six men he faced, four by strikeout, and threw 15 pitches that were 100 mph or faster. It was the kind of performance you'd like to see more often from Kopech.

The Sox are 2-9.

The White Sox manage to make it even worse

Things have gotten worse for the White Sox since I last blogged:

• Luis Robert Jr. is likely out "for months" after straining his right hip flexor running to second base on a double.
• Eloy Jimenez is on the 10-day injured list because of a strained abductor muscle, sustained while running to first base on Easter Sunday.
• The Sox managed to get swept in a four-game series in Kansas City, losing 2-1 Friday, 3-0 Saturday and 5-3 Sunday.

Don't believe the narrative about the Royals "being improved." Sure, they might be marginally better than the 106-loss team they were in 2023. This series was ridiculously lopsided because the Sox are worse than your average local T-ball team.

It's completely unwatchable. At present time, I have no plans to attend a baseball game this season.

The Sox are 0-7 against the American League Central. Remember when people said the Sox were lucky to be in this division? All you can do is laugh.

The Sox are 1-8 overall. There are 153 more games of this crap.