Whether it was the COVID-19 pandemic or the social unrest around the country, the stresses of 2020 combined to disrupt a number of schedules across Major League Baseball.
The White Sox largely avoided complications from either. Yoán Moncada reported to summer camp late due to a COVID-19 case, they had to play a couple of doubleheaders, and Rick Renteria and Adam Engel had to miss games out of precaution, but otherwise, the exceptionally crowded injured list and the lack of fans in the stands were the only indications that the Sox weren't playing a normal season.
The White Sox are unlucky in some respects, but they're fortunate in the big picture. They're in the middle of a three-team race for the AL Central pennant, and even if they finish third, that will be good enough to make the expanded postseason.
At the end of the first month of the season, they stood alone in first. Here's how it happened.
Team Performance
- Record: 22-13
- Run differential: +45
- Standings: First place, 1 GA
- Longest winning streak: Seven, Aug. 16-22
- Longest losing streak: Three, July 26-29; Aug. 8-10
- Largest margin of victory: Nine, vs. Cubs, Aug. 21
- Largest margin of defeat: 12, vs. Minnesota, July 26
Hitting Leaders
- Batting average: .330, Tim Anderson
- On-base percentage: .372, Anderson
- Slugging percentage: .636, José Abreu
- wRC+: Abreu, 166
- Home runs: 12, Abreu
- RBIs: 32, Abreu
- Runs: 26, Anderson
- Walks: 17, Yasmani Grandal
- Strikeouts: 41, Luis Robert
- Stolen bases: 4, Robert
Pitching Leaders
- Wins: 5, Dallas Keuchel
- Losses: 2, Keuchel, Lucas Giolito, Dylan Cease
- Innings: 48⅔, Giolito
- Strikeouts: 66, Giolito
- Appearances: 16, Jimmy Cordero
- Relief innings: 16, Matt Foster
Coming and Going
- White Sox debuts: Grandal, Robert, Edwin Encarnación, Nomar Mazara, Nick Madrigal, Cheslor Cuthbert, Luis González, Yermín Mercedes, Jarrod Dyson, Keuchel, Foster, Gio González, Steve Cishek, Codi Heuer, Dane Dunning, Zack Burdi, Jimmy Lambert, Drew Anderson, Brady Lail
- White Sox departures: Lail, Carson Fulmer, Kelvin Herrera,
#SoxMorgue
- Yoán Moncada: COVID-19
- José Ruíz: Non-specific injured list
- Nomar Mazara: Strep throat
- Reynaldo López: Right shoulder soreness
- Jimmy Lambert: Right forearm strain
- Tim Anderson: Strained right groin
- Carlos Rodón: Left shoulder soreness
- Nick Madrigal: Separated left shoulder
- Aaron Bummer: Left biceps strain
- Leury García: Left thumb sprain
- Ian Hamilton: Right shoulder soreness
- Adam Engel: COVID-19 list (precautionary)
- Gio González: Right groin strain
Awards
Player of the Month: José Abreu. You could make a case for Luis Robert, whose immediate impact from center field resonated throughout Chicago and into the league. But Abreu won the American League's Player of the Month Award for this period, he's all over the league's leaderboard, he had the best week in recent White Sox history, and his glovework is even rates as above average this year.
Least Valuable Player: Nomar Mazara. Circumstances weren't on his side, as he missed the last part of summer camp and the first week of the season with strep. Still, he hit just .243/.333/.288 for the month, with three doubles and nothing even close to a homer run. He's struggling to get lift, it's unclear what kind of pitch he can drive, and his defense isn't carrying him. At least Adam Engel's holding up his bargain as the other side of the platoon.
Most Valuable Pitcher: Dallas Keuchel. Lucas Giolito's peak can't be beat, but Keuchel gave the White Sox a chance to win in all seven of his starts, and was able to issue criticism of the team without getting in a fistfight or war or words with anybody. He's automatically the greatest high-profile veteran free agent signing of the Rick Hahn era.
Least Valuable Pitcher: Reynaldo López. His career was a starter was already on the ropes before the season, so he couldn't really absorb the sore shoulder that took multiple miles per hour off his fastball. He made three starts and allowed eight runs over eight innings.
Fire Man: Matt Foster. A tip of the cap to Alex Colomé, who posted a 0.68 ERA, saved seven games and picked up the win in the one game where he blew the save. Foster's the guy, though. He didn't break camp with the club, but joined early enough in the season to go 4-0, with 11 scoreless outings out of 12. He's already advanced from long relief to the occasional high leverage appearance, and the Peter Principle hasn't kicked in yet.
Gas Can: Steve Cishek. Foster's breakout was needed because Cishek couldn't cut it in his late-inning appearances. It's not just that he posted a 6.39 ERA and blew two leads, but he also allowed six of his 11 inherited runners to score. No White Sox pitcher hurt the Sox's win probability more. He finished the month looking a little stronger, so he may be able to avoid Kelvin Herrera's premature path out of town.
Bench Player: James McCann. He's barely a bench player, because the combination of a bat that refuses to regress and his improved framing has pushed Yasmani Grandal into occasional starts at first base or DH. He hit .351/.424/.544 over 66 plate appearances, and he caught Giolito's no-hitter. It's hard to remember the White Sox having this kind of depth at any position.
Stench Player: Nicky Delmonico. One could point to Zack Collins' 1-for-16 line and give him a disapproving shake of the head here, but he was mainly on the roster to give Rick Renteria the confidence to play his top two catchers in the same lineup. Collins did his job. Delmonico's role in place of Mazara wasn't his idea, but he went 3-for-20 in his spot-start duties regardless.
Gold Glove: Luis Robert. Robert didn't make many highlight-caliber plays, and it's because he didn't really have to. His above-average reads and insane speed means most of his catches look easy, even if he's cutting in front of his left and right fielders to get extra credit. Whether you're looking at UZR (2.0), DRS (9) or OAA (5), he's blowing every metric out of the water.
Hands of Stone: Eloy Jiménez. At least Jiménez doesn't have to worry about ranging too far to his left, because he's got enough problems going back and to his right. He knocked himself out of a game by not heeding the warning track, and he got tangled in the net on more than one occasion. He hasn't convinced anybody that he can hack it in the outfield for the long haul.
Timeline
Carson to go: The Tigers bring an end to the Carson Fulmer Era, claiming the White Sox's 2015 first-round pick on waivers after the White Sox opted against having him break camp with the team. He's since been waived by Detroit, claimed by Pittsburgh, and waived by Pittsburgh. (July 25)
A debut 16 years in the making: Gio González, drafted by the White Sox in 2004, finally pitches for the White Sox in 2016. He starts by recording a one-pitch strikeout, because Reynaldo López departed the game in the middle of an at-bat with a shoulder issue. (July 26)
In service of service time: Three days after locking in a year of team control, the White Sox call up Nick Madrigal as their everyday second baseman. He went 0-for-5 with seven stranded in his debut. (July 31)
They're not coming: After holding off making the decision as long as possible, Major League Baseball cancels the Field of Dreams Game set to take place in Dyersville,Iowa on Aug. 13. (Aug. 3)
Three shoulders in two days: Over the course of two wins at Miller Park, Carlos Rodón, Nick Madrigal and Edwin Encarnación all depart with shoulder issues. Encarnación doesn't require the IL; the others are on the shelf for weeks. (Aug. 3-4)
Get the net: Eloy Jiménez secures the clubhouse lead for the worst defensive play of the season when he gets caught in the net along the sidewall after botching a catch he should have made. Instead, he yielded an inside-the-park homer to Christian Yelich. (Aug. 6)
Turning a win into two losses: After Zach Plesac dominates the Sox for the second time in as many chances in 2020, he and Mike Clevinger celebrate with friends in Chicago, violating team protocol. Plesac is sent home to Cleveland ahead of the team, while Clevinger flies back on the team plane before he's busted. Both are punitively optioned to the alternate training site, and Clevinger only makes one more start for the Indians before he's traded to San Diego. (Aug. 8)
New extra innings rule: In the interest of limiting pitcher workloads, Major League Baseball instituted the minor-league rule where each extra inning starts with a runner on second. The White Sox lose their first shot at it 5-4, although a 46-minute rain delay in the bottom of the 10th meant that it didn't really shorten the game. (Aug. 9)
Veteran presence: After a sleepy 5-1 loss to the Tigers drops the White Sox below .500, Dallas Keuchel administers harsh words to the team, saying, "We've got some guys kinda going through the motions." (Aug. 10)
Back-to-back off Boyd, Part I: The White Sox greet former Detroit ace Matthew Boyd with solo shots from Tim Anderson and Eloy Jiménez at Comerica Park. (Aug. 12)
New doubleheader rule: Seeing that twin bills are going to be a major part of the schedule for the remainder of the season, MLB adopts another minor-league rule by shortening doubleheader games from nine innings to seven. The St. Louis Cardinals are the reason why, and after sitting for two weeks due to a COVID-19 outbreak and traveling to Chicago in 41 rental cars, the Cardinals rejoin the season by winning both games of the doubleheader emphatically. The hope is that it's the low point of the season. (Aug. 15)
Four consecutive homers: The White Sox restored some of their dignity, avoiding a sweep at the hands of the COVID-compromised Cardinals with a 7-2 victory. Yoán Moncada, Yasmani Grandal, José Abreu and Eloy Jiménez team up to hit four consecutive homers off poor Roel Ramirez, whose major-league debut didn't go as planned. (Aug. 16)
Back-to-back off Boyd, Part II: Boyd's attempt to rewrite the script against the White Sox fails immediately, because he becomes the first pitcher in major league history to allow back-to-back homers to start a game against the same team. The only differences -- they played in Chicago, and Moncada replaced Jiménez in the second spot. (Aug. 17)
Dane Dunning debuts: In a face-off against 2018 first-overall pick Casey Mize, Dunning battles to a draw by pitching into the fifth. They settle for no-decisions, after which Abreu and Edwin Encarnación hit solo shots to determine the outcome. (Aug. 19)
Nine straight changeups: Lucas Giolito seals the four-game sweep of Detroit by striking out 13 over seven shutout innings. In his final frame, he and James McCann open the inning with nine consecutive offspeed pitches. (Aug. 20)
Lester limps out: The White Sox open the Crosstown Cup by homering six times in a 10-1 rout at Wrigley, including four homers off Jon Lester over the first four innings. (Aug. 21)
Atreyu: José Abreu puts his imprint on the crosstown rivalry with three homers over a 4-for-4 night as the White Sox secure their first series win against a good team. (Aug. 22)
A bicycle built for two: Circumstances might've given him no other choice, but Rick Renteria finally successfully executes an alternative starter arrangement by tethering Reynaldo López and Gio González to get through seven. Gonzalez picks up his first win for the White Sox. (Aug. 22)
Player of the Week: Yu Darvish puts a stop to the White Sox's seven-game winning streak, but he has to absorb another blow from Abreu, whose solo shot gives him six over the three-game series. Abreu wins the league's weekly honors for his outburst. (Aug. 23)
No-no for Giolito: Lucas Giolito pitches the 19th no-hitter in franchise history in dominating fashion, striking out 13 Pittsburgh Pirates for the highest nine-inning game score for a White Sox pitcher. (Aug. 25)
PERTINENT: Lucas Giolito's no-hitter a reward for those who kept watching
The lone deadline deal: The White Sox can't find a way to add pitching help, but they do shore up their outfield defense by acquiring Jarrod Dyson from the Pirates for international pool money. (Aug. 28)
Grand redemption: After letting the tying run score because a throw skipped through his legs when he wasn't looking. Yasmani Grandal makes up for the mistake immediately by opening the ninth with a walk-off homer against Kansas City's Ian Kennedy. (Aug. 28)
Extra special extra innings: The White Sox's second attempt at navigating the modified extra innings turns out better for them. An ill-advised steal attempt by Adalberto Mondesi keeps KC off the board in the tpp of the 10th, and Luis Robert ends it with a three-run walk-off and a terrific image. (Aug. 30)
First place: Thanks to a Max Kepler muff, the White Sox overcome a 4-0 deficit and a three-error inning to beat the Twins at Target Field, giving them sole possession of first place as they head into September. (Aug. 31)
