The second piece of news is the Sox activated Carson Smith from the disabled list and sent down Marco Hernandez. The play of Josh Rutledge made Hernandez expendable although he's an injury away from returning. If Smith is as dominant as he was for Seattle last year, the Sox have one of the most, if not THE strongest bullpen in the game. If the New York Yankees rotation weren't so dreadful, it would have been interesting to see the deathmatches the two pitching staffs could put on.
As for the game, Jose Quintana did it again. Quintana had faced the Sox 5 times previously, he did not allow a hit through 5 innings in 3 of them and had allowed just 1 in the fourth. Tonight he allowed just 4 total hits and a run, ruining a great start by Steven Wright to defeat the Boston Red Sox 4-1 at Commiskey Park.
Mr. Mookie Betts popped up to begin the game. Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts both flied out to end the inning. The White Sox wasted no time scoring in the bottom of the first inning. Adam Eaton singled to lead off the game but was erased on the Jimmy Rollins force. Jose Abreu put the south-siders on top with a triple to make it 1-0. Wright whiffed Todd Frazier and Melky Cabrera flied out to end the inning.
David Ortiz flied out to begin the top of the second inning. Hanley Ramirez grounded out and Travis Shaw popped up to end the inning.Wright worked some magic in the bottom of the second inning. Brett Lawrie walked but Jerry Sands struck out. Dioneer Navarro bounced into a double play to end the inning.
The Bosox went quietly in the top of the third. Chris Young flied out, Ryan Hanigan grounded out and Jackie Bradley Jr lined out to end the frame. The White Sox struck again in the bottom of the third. Austin Jackson and Eaton worked back to back walks and both advanced on the Rollins ground out. Jose Abreu walked to load the bases and Jackson scored on the ground out by Frazier. Cabrera struck out to end the inning but the Sox were up 2-0.
The Bosox wasted one of their only chances to get back in the game in the top of the fourth. Mr. Mookie grounded out but Pedroia singled. Then Bogaerts banged into a double play to end the inning. Wright did what he could to keep the Sox in the game in the bottom of the fourth. Lawrie grounded out, Sands struck out and Navarro grounded out to end the inning.
The Sox tried to fight back in the top of the fifth. Ortiz looked at strike 3 and Ramirez put the Bosox on the board with a solo blast to cut the lead 2-1. Shaw and Young grounded out to end the inning but the Bosox were back in the game.
Wright kept the south-siders in check in the bottom of the fifth. Jackson and Eaton flied out then Rollins grounded out to end the inning.
Could the Bosox strike again in the sixth? Hanigan grounded out but JBJ represented the tying run with a single. Mr. Mookie flied out and Pedroia whiffed to end the inning. So much for that. Wright returned for one more inning and made it count. Abreu and Frazier struck out but Cabrera singled. Lawrie flied out to end the inning. Wright deserved a lot better but he was on the hook despite just giving up 2 runs in 6 innings.
Quintana returned for the top of the seventh and Bogaerts greeted him with a single. Ortiz whiffed, Ramirez lined out and Shaw whiffed to end the inning. Quintana sure has their number, that's for sure. Carson Smith made his Red Sox debut in the bottom of the seventh inning. Sands grounded out, Navarro grounded out and Jackson struck out to end the inning. Good start to the season for Carson.
Quintana returned for the top of the eighth and the Bosox continued to do nothing. Young flied out, Hanigan struck out and JBJ grounded out to end the inning. Quintana had pitched 8 innings and allowed just one run. Talk about domination. The Chisox put the game away in the bottom of the eighth off Junichi Tazawa. Eaton singled, Rollins walked and Abreu drove in both guys with a double to put the game out of reach. Frazier walked to chase Tazawa. Matt Barnes came in and walked Lawrie to load the bases but punched out pinch hitter Carlos Sanchez. Navarro flied out to end the inning. Way to go Tazawa, turned a manageable inning into a disaster.
Former Yankees closer David Robertson came on in the top of the ninth for the save. Mr. Mookie grounded out, Pedroia grounded out and Bogaerts struck out to end the game. The Chisox had won 4-1.
Jackass of the night is Junichi Tazawa. The Sox were down by a single run when Taz puked on himself, giving up 2 runs on 2 hits and 2 walks in 2/3 of an inning.
The Good:
Hanley Ramirez was 1 for 3 and his solo blast was the only run the Sox would score. Jackie Bradley Jr was 1 for 3. For the third time this season, Steven Wright pitched great and took the loss. He went 6 full innings and gave up just 2 runs on 3 hits and 3 walks while striking out 6. Carson Smith made his season debut with a scoreless 7th inning. Matt Barnes finished off the top of the ninth.
The Bad:
Mookie Betts was 0 for 4. David Ortiz was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts. Travis Shaw was 0 for 3 with a strikeout. The supposed lefty killing Chris Young was 0 for 3. Ryan Hanigan was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
The Ugly:
Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts were both just 1 for 4
Final Thoughts:
It was fun while it lasted but the loss knocked the Red Sox out of first place with the Baltimore Orioles wiping out the last place New York Yankees to retake the top spot. Quintana has their number so their video scouts have a lot of work to do. Chris Sale is tough enough, but if Quintana has their number then the Sox need to take Chicago very seriously for the rest of the season. The Sox really need Chris Young to step it up because he's giving them nothing so far. They're better off prying Jonny Gomes out of Japan for one last run. As for Wright, he's 2-3 with a 1.67 ERA. He's pitching well enough to stay in the rotation, he just gets no run support. Tomorrow night the Sox dodge a bullet as Carlos Rodon has been pushed up a day with the surprising release of Jon Danks. The White Sox will have to call up someone from Charlotte to pitch game 3. Going for the Red Sox tomorrow? The winless Clay Buchholz. God help us all.
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