I guess the White Sox must think they're legally required to give up a first-inning crooked number in National League parks.
It only took Reynaldo Lopez two pitches to trail this game for good, giving up a homer to Adam Frazier. He gave up three more runs before the inning was over, with the last one scoring after Nicky Delmonico chased his own tail on a fly ball over his head.
The White Sox have now been outscored 15-0 in the first inning alone over their last four games, and it's a minor miracle they've won any of them.
Lopez didn't look much better afterward. He gave up two more runs after recording the first two outs of the second inning. Leury Garcia couldn't hold onto the ball with a leaping effort at the center field wall, and that RBI triple was followed by a near-homer off the top of the wall in right.
Rick Renteria called it a night for Lopez after he started the third inning with an HBP and walk, and the White Sox never made a run at the deficit.
They had their best opportunity in the fifth inning, when Garcia and Tim Anderson started the inning with singles. That brought the pitcher's spot to the plate, and Renteria let Chris Beck try bunting instead of pinch-hitting. Beck struck out on a foul bunt, and neither Yoan Moncada (strikeout) nor Yolmer Sanchez (groundout) could cover for it.
It wasn't a great decision for Renteria in terms of watchable baseball. That made up three of the White Sox' seven hitless at-bats with runners in scoring position.
This is the first of 16 consecutive games for the White Sox, though, and so maybe Renteria didn't want to burn out his bullpen in an attempt to make up a six-run deficit over five innings. Beck did reward that part of Renteria's strategy by getting five more outs, running his total to 11 for the night. He was perfect until plunking Frazier on the foot with his final pitch.
While Beck stranded a pair of runners for Lopez, Aaron Bummer couldn't to the same for Beck. He gave up an RBI double that put a run on Beck's tab and gave the game its final score.
Bullet points:
*Moncada went 1-for-4 with a strikeout in his return from the DL.
*Six of the Sox' seven hits were singles, and they didn't draw a walk. Hence, shutout.
*Jose Abreu had the lone double, and he had a nice game at first, making the picks on a couple of tough throws from Moncada and Tim Anderson.
*The Sox will still not have won a series against a team that isn't the Royals.
Record: 10-28 | Box score
