After Friday’s dramatic walk-off win, the Chicago White Sox
got shutout last night and will attempt to get back on track this afternoon.
Rotation Issues
To fill the hole in the rotation, the White Sox purchased
the contract of journeyman Scott Carroll. The 29-year-old right hander owned a
1.57 ERA over four starts in Charlotte, and he will make his major league debut
today. It remains to be seen how long Carroll will stay in the rotation, but he
has a chance to stick if he throws well given the White Sox uncertainty in the
starting rotation.
In a separate move, the White Sox also optioned Erik Johnson
to Triple-A Charlotte to refine is mechanics. Johnson has walked 15 batters in
23.2 innings of work, so the White Sox want him to work on commanding his
pitchers better. I would expect to see Johnson again in a month or so after he
shows that he can throw strikes more consistently.
Chris Sale is scheduled to throw a bullpen session today,
and he hopes to return when he is eligible to come off the disabled list on May
3rd. Obviously, the White Sox desperately need Sale back to help
sure up the rotation.
John Danks has had a solid April, but last night was another
example of why he needs to cut down on his walks. Danks has issued 17 walks in
31 innings pitched and only he only has 18 strikeouts. A 1:1 strikeout to walk
ratio does not equate to long term success, so Danks’ 3.48 ERA will start to
climb if he doesn’t correct that problem. Fortunately, Danks has been able to
pitch out of jams, but that likely won’t last all season long.
It goes without saying that the White Sox rotation is a
mess. Right now the starting rotation is Jose Quintana, John Danks, Andre
Rienzo, and Scott Carroll. The White Sox aren’t sure who will start on
Wednesday when they need a fifth starter, so that will be another situation to
monitor. With Chris Sale coming back, and hopefully a more effective Erik
Johnson in a month or so, the White Sox could be in better shape. But for now,
it is looking pretty ugly.
Offense Stays Hot
The White Sox hitters have cooled off a bit, but they still
have carried this team through April. The White Sox lead the American League in
runs scored (134), are third in average (.269), second in home runs (30), and
third in OPS (.763). This is a pleasant change after last year’s dismal
offensive performance, but it is also needed with how bad the pitching has
been.
Jose Abreu continues to lead the offense and he snapped out
of a 1-for-25 slump this week. Abreu has 12 hits in his last 34 at-bats,
including five home runs and 13 RBI. After Friday night’s two homer, six RBI performance,
my man crush for Abreu has reached an unhealthy level. It was great to see him
make adjustments to bust out of that slump, and he will likely have to do that
a few more times this season.
Remarkably, Dayan Viciedo (.368) is leading the league in
hitting, while Alexei Ramirez (.343) is fourth. Tyler Flowers is hitting .388,
but he does not have enough at-bats to qualify in the rankings. All three of
these averages will start to come down as the season progresses, but it is
refreshing to see for now.
Injury Moves
Gordon Beckham was reinstated from the disabled list on
Friday and immediately inserted into the starting lineup at second base.
Beckham will need to perform much better offensively if he wants to stay in the
lineup.
Conor Gillaspie was placed on the 15-day disabled list
retroactive to April 22nd with a left-hand contusion below his
thumb. The move might be precautionary, but it also allows the White Sox more
time to figure out what to do with their infield situation. Marcus Semien now
shifts over to third base with Beckham back, but he could either move to the
utility role or even the minor leagues when Gillaspie returns. Either Semien or
Leury Garcia will have to be sent down, and the White Sox could decide to keep
Garcia to let Semien get every day at-bats in the minors.
-Eric Tichelbaut
Twitter: @etichel07
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