White Sox complete sweep of Twins, will host Royals this weekend

Tim Anderson

The White Sox didn't exactly crush Minnesota right-hander Michael Pineda, but they did finally beat him. The South Siders completed a three-game sweep of the Twins with a 4-2 victory Thursday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Pineda had made five starts against the Sox since joining the Twins in 2019. He was 4-0 in those starts, and the Twins were 5-0 in those games. Alas, that spell has been broken.

Tim Anderson hit Pineda's first pitch of the game for a home run to left field, his fifth of the season. Jake Lamb homered for the first time this season in the third. Andrew Vaughn added an RBI single in the sixth, as the Sox scored three runs off Pineda (2-2) in 5.1 innings.

Yermin Mercedes added a pinch-hit, two-out RBI single in the bottom of the eighth, which took a 3-2 Sox lead to 4-2. Remember what I said yesterday: Teams that get two-out RBIs win championships.

Those four runs turned out to be enough as Sox pitching wobbled but didn't break. Lance Lynn (4-1) needed 111 pitches to get through five innings. The Sox committed three errors behind him, which didn't help matters. 

But the veteran right-hander made one of the biggest pitches of the game in the bottom of the fifth. With the bases loaded and two outs and a 3-2 count on Mitch Garver, Lynn preserved a precarious 2-1 lead with a blazing fastball that caught Garver looking. That was Lynn's 111th and final pitch, and he made it count.

Matt Foster worked a 1-2-3 sixth. Garrett Crochet walked two in the seventh, but he also struck out two to escape trouble. For some reason, Jose Ruiz was allowed to pitch in high leverage in the eighth. He gave up a home run to Max Kepler that cut the Sox's lead to 3-2, plus two singles.

Minnesota had runners at first and second with one out and a chance to tie the game. Enter Liam Hendriks, who cleaned up that mess, then worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his seventh save.

Hendriks threw 28 pitches in Wednesday's win, so there was some question about his availability Thursday. But not only was he available, he also retired all five men he faced in high leverage.

Give Sox manager Tony La Russa full credit for going all in to win Thursday's game. Hendriks may not be available Friday against the Kansas City Royals. But if the Sox lose to the Royals on Friday because Hendriks couldn't pitch, oh well, I think it was more important to beat the Twins on Thursday.

Now, the Sox (22-13) are a full 10 games ahead of the Twins (12-23) in the AL Central standings. We expect Minnesota to play better and make a push at some point. But in the meantime, it was important to kick sand in the Twins' faces while you can.

Next up, a four-game weekend series against the Royals, which includes a doubleheader Friday. I'm going to Sunday's game, and we'll review the series when blogging resumes Monday.

Here are your pitching matchups:

• Friday, Game 1: Lucas Giolito (2-3, 4.54 ERA) vs. Brad Keller (2-4, 7.31 ERA)
• Friday, Game 2: Michael Kopech (2-0, 1.61 ERA) vs. Jakob Junis (1-2, 5.14 ERA)
• Saturday: Carlos Rodon (5-0, 0.58 ERA) vs. Mike Minor (2-2, 5.75 ERA)
• Sunday: Dylan Cease (2-0, 2.80 ERA) vs. Brady Singer (1-3, 4.19 ERA)
  

White Sox take second game of series against Twins, will try for sweep Thursday

Billy Hamilton

The White Sox are now nine games ahead of the Minnesota Twins in the AL Central after their 13-8 victory Wednesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Sure, it's only May 13, but it's worth noting that the defending division champion Twins (12-22) are 10 games below .500, and they're digging themselves quite a hole. 

Meanwhile, the Sox are 21-13 and remain in first place, one game ahead of the Cleveland Indians.

There wasn't much pitching in Wednesday's game. In fact, as a fan of well-pitched games, it was a little irritating to watch at times. The Sox were ahead 12-3 after five innings, and they were never really in danger, but it wasn't a clean finish for the bullpen.

But instead of dwelling on that, let's look at some Sox offensive highlights:

• Billy Hamilton went 4 for 4 with three runs scored and an RBI. He finished a home run short of the cycle. 
• Andrew Vaughn had only one hit, but it was the first home run of his career -- a two-run shot off J.A. Happ as part of a five-run rally in the bottom of the fourth inning.
• Jose Abreu went 2 for 5 with an RBI triple and a two-run single. All three of his RBIs came with two outs.
• Speaking of two-out RBIs, Yoan Moncada had a two-out, two-run single to cap a three-run fifth inning. Teams that get two-out RBIs win championships.
• Yasmani Grandal continued his bizarre, three-true-outcomes season. He went 1 for 3 with a home run, two walks, a strikeout and three runs scored. His ridiculous slash line now stands at .130/.384/.333.

The Sox will try for the sweep Thursday afternoon, and they'll face their nemesis -- right-hander Michael Pineda. Since Pineda joined the Twins, he's started five games against the Sox. Minnesota has won all five times.

Lance Lynn will get the call for the Sox. Carlos Rodon had his start pushed back to Saturday. Apparently, Rodon is dealing with some minor ailments -- back tightness and an achy hamstring and whatnot -- so the Sox are being cautious with him. Thanks to the off day Monday, Lynn will work on regular rest -- he last pitched Saturday in Kansas City.

White Sox to host Minnesota Twins for first time in 2021

Alex Colome

When the season started, many observers thought the AL Central race would come down to the defending champion Minnesota Twins and the White Sox -- and it still might.

But thus far, things have been going much better for the Sox than they have been for the Twins. The Sox are 19-13 and alone in first place in the division, while the Twins sit seven games behind in fourth place at 12-20.

The two teams will match up for three games in Chicago starting Tuesday night, and the Sox will be seeing a lot of the Twins in the next two and a half months -- 16 of the 19 meetings between these two clubs will occur within the next 77 days.

Of note, the Twins are 0-7 in extra-inning games so far this season, so they've lost a lot of close ones. You could say it's bad luck, but you could also say Minnesota's bullpen has been brutal.

Former Sox closer Alex Colome has had his problems since joining the Twins -- he has given up 15 runs (eight earned) in just 12.2 innings this season. He's 1-3 with a 5.68 ERA. Tyler Duffey (0-2, 5.56 ERA) also has been having a rough time out of the Minnesota bullpen.

Here's a look at the pitching matchups for this series:

Tuesday: Dylan Cease (2-0, 2.37 ERA) vs. Kenta Maeda (2-2, 5.02 ERA)

Wednesday: Dallas Keuchel (1-1, 3.79 ERA) vs. J.A. Happ (2-0, 1.91 ERA)

Thursday: Carlos Rodon (5-0, 0.58 ERA) vs. Michael Pineda (2-1, 2.43 ERA)

Three things to watch for in this series:

1. Can the Sox solve Pineda? I always cringe a little when I see Pineda scheduled to pitch against the Sox. Lifetime, he's 5-3 with a 3.21 ERA against the South Siders, and frankly, I'm surprised he's not 8-0. Pineda is a decent, but not great pitcher -- a lifetime 3.96 ERA. But especially since he's joined the Twins, he always seems to save his best games for the Sox.

2. Michael Kopech's usage. Looking ahead a little bit, the Sox have a doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals on Friday, and they are considering using Kopech to start one of those games. But if the Sox have a high-leverage situation in the late innings against the Twins, such as extra innings, will manager Tony La Russa use Kopech to try to get the win? With all due respect to the Royals, my general feeling is still that Minnesota is a bigger threat to the Sox. No matter what the standings say at the moment, it's important to beat the Twins.

3. Yasmani Grandal's offense. It's starting to get a little insane for the Sox catcher, who is batting .113/.378/.242 so far this season. Grandal has appeared in five games in the month of May and taken 22 at-bats. He's 0 for 7 with five strikeouts, 14 walks and a sacrifice fly. Fourteen walks in 22 plate appearances for a guy who is batting .113 and can barely put the ball in play! At this point, you wonder why pitchers are not challenging Grandal more often.

Minnesota Twins add Homer Bailey, Rich Hill to fill out starting rotation

Homer Bailey

The Minnesota Twins needed two starting pitchers to fill out their 2020 rotation, but they failed to sign any of the high-profile names on the market.

On Tuesday, the Twins picked up two veterans to fill those gaps, signing right-hander Homer Bailey and left-hander Rich Hill to one-year contracts.

Bailey, 33, won a total of eight games in four seasons from 2015-18, but he bounced back to respectability in 2019. He went 13-9 with a 4.57 ERA in 31 starts and 163.1 innings pitched.

Eighteen of those starts came with the Kansas City Royals, 13 with the Oakland Athletics after a midseason trade.

Bailey's deal is for $7 million, and he will earn performance bonuses if he reaches 180 innings, something he has not done since the 2013 season.

Hill, 39, will be 40 years old by the time the season starts, and he's still good when he's healthy, but he's on the injured list a lot. He was limited to 13 starts in 2019 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he did go 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 58.2 innings.

Over the past five seasons, Hill has made 86 starts, or about 17 per season. That's why his contract contains only $3 million in guarantees. The contract escalates to $9.5 million if he hits 15 starts or 75 innings. Hill had surgery on his elbow in October, and he won't return until at least June.

I wouldn't expect either of these two guys to provide a major impact for the Twins, but they had to do something. They still have their ace, Jose Berrios, and two middle-of-the-rotation pitchers in Jake Odorizzi and Michael Pineda.

However, the other members of their 2019 rotation signed elsewhere. Kyle Gibson is with the Texas Rangers. Martin Perez has moved on to the Boston Red Sox.

Of course, the Twins won 101 games and the AL Central title last summer on the strength of their excellent offense, not their pitching. They smashed a MLB record 307 home runs, and no matter what, they are going to have to hit their way back to the playoffs.

Rumor has it Minnesota "has room to go big" for third baseman Josh Donaldson. That would add to an already good lineup, and it also would improve the Twins' infield defense -- a must behind a starting staff that is likely to be considered suspect going into the season.

Yankees, Astros dominating American League playoffs

Justin Verlander

Who is Randy Dobnak anyway?

The Minnesota Twins play the White Sox 19 times a season, so I'd like to think I'm familiar with the Minnesota roster. But I was left scratching my head when I saw that Dobnak was starting Game 2 of the American League Division Series on Saturday against the New York Yankees.

I didn't recall Dobnak pitching for Minnesota at all this season against the Sox -- or against anyone. Turns out, he did appear in relief in a game against Chicago on Aug. 29. I must have missed that one.

Dobnak entered Saturday's game with nine career MLB appearances, and predictable results ensued against the Yankees. He allowed four earned runs on six hits with two walks and no strikeouts over two-plus innings, and New York rolled to an 8-2 victory.

The Yankees now possess a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series, and they are continuing their decades-long mastery of the Twins. Minnesota's postseason losing streak now stands at 15 games -- a MLB record -- and 12 of those losses have come against the Yankees.

Obviously, the Twins don't have the pitching to get the job done in this series, despite their 101 wins in the regular season. Minnesota's starting rotation is in tatters. Jose Berrios lost Game 1. Manager Rocco Baldelli for some reason opted to save 15-game winner Jake Odorizzi for Game 3. Other than that, there are no good options for the Twins.

Michael Pineda is suspended because of performance-enhancing drug use. Kyle Gibson has been dealing with illness, and apparently doesn't have the stamina to pitch more than a couple of innings at a time. And Martin Perez has regressed into the below-average starter he's been for most of his career.

It's hard to see the Twins winning their next two games at home and forcing a Game 5 against the mighty Yankees. Heck, it's hard to see Minnesota winning Game 3 at this point.

Meanwhile, the Houston Astros are the other side of the coin with starting pitching. They have a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five series with the Tampa Bay Rays. Honestly, it's easy to have sympathy for the Tampa Bay hitters, who have had to face the best two pitchers in baseball the first two games of that series.

Here's how Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole have fared:

Verlander in Game 1: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 8 Ks, 3 BBs
Cole in Game 2: 7.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 15 Ks, 1 BB

Game 1 was a 6-2 win for Houston; Game 2 was a 3-1 win for the Astros.

Zack Greinke gets the ball in Game 3 for Houston, and while he's a slight downgrade from Verlander and Cole, he's still going to be tough on Tampa Bay hitters. Greinke is 18-5 with a 2.93 ERA this season. How's that for a No. 3 starter? Good luck, Rays.

For months, it's looked as though the 107-win Astros and 103-win Yankees were on a collision course to meet in the American League Championship Series. At this point, it would be a shock if that matchup does not take place.

And, a word to the wise for the White Sox and their brass: Neither the Astros nor the Yankees are going away in the American League. They are setting the bar, and the bar is much higher than mediocre 87-75 seasons.

Even if the Sox improve by 15 games next season to get to 87 wins, it's hard to see them matching up with the league powers. They need about a 30-game improvement. It's going to take more than just one good offseason, I dare say.

Michael Pineda stinks with two outs; White Sox take advantage

Michael Pineda

Here's an unusual stat: With two outs in an inning, opposing hitters have posted a .366/.414/.710 slash line against New York Yankees right-hander Michael Pineda.

The White Sox took advantage of Pineda bizarre inability to close out innings Wednesday in a 5-0 victory over the Yankees.

Pineda retired the first two hitters in the Sox's second inning with little difficulty, but then the wheels fell off.

Brett Lawrie singled and advanced to second on a passed ball. Pineda walked Dioner Navarro on four straight pitches, which I thought might have been a pitch-around with the struggling Avisail Garcia on deck, but then Garcia burned Pineda with an RBI single that scored Lawrie.

J.B. Shuck's ground-rule double plated Navarro to make it 2-0, and Tim Anderson followed with a two-run double down the left-field line on an 0-2 pitch.

What started out looking like a harmless inning for Pineda ended with the Sox leading 4-0. These struggles are obviously a trend for the New York pitcher, but it seems to be one of those hard-to-explain things in baseball.

The Sox added one more run in the sixth, and that was more than enough for starter Miguel Gonzalez, who upped his won-loss record to 2-4 with one of his best starts of the season. He went seven shutout innings, allowing only five hits. He struck out three and walked one.

Zach Duke and David Robertson combined for two inning of scoreless relief, and the Sox (44-41) finished off their fifth consecutive series win. The Sox haven't been able to sweep anybody during that time, mind you, but an 11-5 record over the past 16 games is pretty good.

Can Chase Headley jump-start the Yankees in the AL East race?

The New York Yankees have a mediocre 51-48 record and a minus-30 run differential, and 80 percent of their projected starting rotation is on the disabled list.

Nevertheless, the Yankees still believe they have a shot to win this year, and they signaled as much on Tuesday when they acquired third baseman Chase Headley from the San Diego Padres in exchange for infielder Yangervis Solarte and minor-league pitcher Rafael De Paula.

You can't blame the Yankees for believing they have a chance. The AL East is no longer the strongest division in baseball. Despite its uneven play, New York sits just four games back of first-place Baltimore entering Wednesday's action.

But can Headley make an impact? The numbers suggest he will not. He has experienced a steady decline since his career year in 2012.

2012: .286/.376/.498, 31 HRs, 115 RBIs
2013: .250/.347/.400, 13 HRs, 50 RBIs
2014: .230/..296/.353, 7 HRs, 33 RBIs

There's nothing about Headley that suggests he will ever repeat his numbers from two years ago. That was a career outlier. His career slash is .266/.346/.409. He's perhaps a better hitter than he's shown this year, but it's folly to think he'll ever slug close to .500 again.

Headley has been floundering on some awful San Diego teams. He has no help in that lineup whatsoever, so there is some chance he will be resurgent in New York where he will no longer be counted upon to carry an offense. Some have noted Headley's numbers might be hurt by the pitcher-friendly confines at Petco Park. Yankee Stadium, of course, is a hitter-friendly ballpark.

However, an analysis of Headley's splits this year shows no difference in his slugging percentage home and away:

Home: .250/.301/.354, 2 HRs, 19 RBIs
Road: .209/.290/.353, 5 HRs, 14 RBIs

Headley has been a slightly better offensive player at home, in fact. I'm skeptical he'll be the game-changer the Yankees are looking for.

What New York really needs to do is add a front-line starting pitcher. The Yankees have had horrible luck this year with Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia, Ivan Nova and Michael Pineda all on the disabled list. The latter three are on the 60-day DL. Brandon McCarthy has made two good starts since coming over from the Arizona Diamondbacks, but the Yankees are at least one arm, if not two, short in the starting rotation.

There are rumors the Yankees are interested in White Sox left-hander John Danks. I would think, though, that New York needs a top-of-the-rotation starter, like Cliff Lee or Cole Hamels. Danks is nothing more than a mid-rotation guy pitching with a surgically repaired shoulder at this point.

Even with Headley, I don't think New York is going to win the AL East as presently constructed. I think the Yankees need that guy to lead their pitching stuff, or else they'll be lucky to stay in the hunt for the wild card in a mediocre American League.

Masahiro Tanaka: Some first impressions

I finally got a chance to watch New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka on TV for the first time on Wednesday afternoon. The highly regarded Japanese import started the first game of a day-night doubleheader against the Cubs at Yankee Stadium, and I have to say I was impressed.

Tanaka fired eight shutout innings in New York's 3-0 victory. He struck out 10 and walked just one, while surrendering only two hits. And, oh, both those hits were bunts. That was the extent of the Cubs' offense on this day. Tanaka threw first-pitch strikes to 20 of the 27 batters he faced, and had only two 3-ball counts the entire afternoon. He was simply overpowering.

Some scouts have said Tanaka has the best split-finger fastball they've ever seen. I'm in no position to argue. He had Cubs hitters swinging and missing at that pitch all afternoon. They couldn't hit it, nor could they lay off it. For the most part, Tanaka was starting his splitter at the bottom of the strike zone, enticing the Cubs hitters to swing at it, but it would fall out of sight before it reached home plate.

I also was impressed by Tanaka's ability to change the hitter's eye level. He wasn't afraid to pitch up in the zone with his fastball. A few of the Cubs hitters took belt-high fastballs that were right over the plate. They were probably looking for the splitter and got out-guessed. Tanaka also showed he could grab a first-pitch strike by using his slider. He got ahead in the count against almost everybody, and that made for a long afternoon for the Chicago hitters.

Tanaka reminded me a bit of the late 2005 version of Jose Contreras, when his split-finger was overpowering opposing hitters. Tanaka doesn't have as much heat on his fastball as Contreras did, but his slider is probably better. And the two pitchers are similar in the sense that you could tell a hitter the splitter is coming, and they still wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

Through the first 22 innings of his major league career, Tanaka has struck out 28 and walked just two. He's allowed six runs (five earned) through his first three starts, and all of those runs were scored in either the first inning or the second inning. From the third inning on, he has allowed nothing in each of his three outings.

When it comes to ace pitchers, they always say you better get them early in the count, and you better get them early in the game, otherwise you aren't going to get them. Tanaka has been an example of that thus far. 

All that said, it is worth noting that the Cubs' offense stinks. The North Siders were blanked 2-0 by Michael Pineda and three New York relievers in Wednesday's nightcap. The Cubs, who fell to 4-10 on the season, are not swinging the bats well right now and are hardly the toughest test Tanaka will face.

There are some good hitters in the AL East. Boston and Baltimore, in particular, have strong lineups when all their players are healthy. The more you face an opposing pitcher, the more you know, and it will be interesting to see how the AL East hitters adjust the second, third or fourth time they see Tanaka as the season moves along. That will be the true test to see just how good this guy is.