White Sox lose for 5th time in 6 games, 3-2 to Indians, on another walk-off home run
The Chicago White Sox appear intent on doing things the hard way.
Their top seed in the American League playoffs is long gone. Their grip on the AL Central is tenuous. And their ace will go into his first postseason start coming off a career-high 119 pitches.
The Sox lost for the fifth time in six games Wednesday, 3-2 to the Cleveland Indians, on Jordan Luplow’s ninth-inning home run off Gio Gonzalez on a 3-0 pitch.
With the loss, the Sox (34-22) were tied with the Minnesota Twins in the Central, pending the outcome of the Twins-Tigers game. They’re only two games ahead of the third-place Indians with four games remaining.
Lucas Giolito, in his final start before the postseason, gave up two runs in six innings, striking out 11. It was his third game with 10 or more strikeouts in 2020 and the 10th of his career.
He went toe to toe with Shane Bieber, who should be a unanimous choice for the American League Cy Young Award. Bieber lasted five innings, allowing one run on two hits while striking out 10. He finished his season with a 1.63 ERA and 122 strikeouts, both tops in the majors, and he figures to start Game 1 of the Indians’ wild-card series — perhaps even facing Giolito again.
After giving up a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the sixth by Franmil Reyes, Giolito appeared to be on fumes. But Renteria left him in, and Giolito’s pitch count went up to 119 before the inning ended.
Garret Crochet pitched a scoreless seventh, striking out two of the three batters he faced, including Roberto Perez on a 93-mph change-up. Codi Heuer survived the eighth after a two-out error by Nick Madrigal and a walk, striking out Reyes to escape.
Yoan Moncada hustled his way to a triple to start the eighth and scored on Jose Abreu’s sacrifice fly to tie the score at 2, but the Indians walked it off for the second night in a row.
Before the game, Renteria said he had a “conversation” with his players about keeping up their focus and intensity down the stretch.
Renteria said closer Alex Colome was feeling “OK” after incurring back spasms Tuesday following a six-pitch ninth inning that forced Renteria to go with rookie Matt Foster to begin the fateful 10th. The Sox lost, 5-3, on Jose Ramirez’s three-run, walk-off home run off Jose Ruiz.
Whether Colome was available Wednesday was a question Renteria did not care to answer, though he said he was “optimistic.”
Renteria said Crochet “certainly is showing us he’s capable” of performing in high-leverage situations in a division race, in spite of his lack of experience. He was the Sox’s first pick in the 2020 draft (No. 11) and is the first player from that draft to make it to the majors.
“It just so happens it’s in a pennant race,” Renteria said. “But you know what? If there is a young man who is showing he’s just taking care of a moment and controlling the things he can control, he’s showing he’s capable of doing that, which is great. You don’t want to give it too much weight … but trust what you’re doing and the outcomes are going to be the outcome.”
———
©2020 Chicago Tribune
Visit the Chicago Tribune at www.chicagotribune.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
