After getting outclassed in a four-game sweep against Houston, the Chicago White Sox were looking forward to playing the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. Especially after a day off and with Cleveland inching closer in the AL Central standings.
Instead, the offense came out flat. Even after Yasmani Grandal provided a heroic moment, the bullpen bridge to Liam Hendriks once again collapsed with Garrett Crochet on the mound. What was supposed to be a bounce-back night is now the White Sox longest losing streak of the season extended to five games in a 6-3 loss.
In the first six innings, Pirates starting pitcher Tyler Anderson held the Sox to just two hits. Lucas Giolito had the first one with a single, and Tim Anderson followed with an opposite-field flare in the third inning. No runs came out of that rally, and for a lineup that usually feasts off left-handed pitching, it became pretty frustrating watching the White Sox bats remain dormant.
That changed in the seventh inning. Jose Abreu singled through the infield and reached third base when Leury Garcia made good contact off Anderson's changeup with a single to center. With Zack Collins's spot in the order, manager Tony La Russa decided to have Yasmani Grandal pinch-hit. The thought process was correct as Grandal's splits against LHP were .250/.491/.417.
La Russa's decision-making was rewarded, as Grandal destroyed Anderson's sinker for a three-run homer to center field. For a brief moment, the dread of possibly losing to the Pirates lifted as the Sox took a 3-2 lead.
The bad feelings returned in a hurry. Garrett Crochet took over for Giolito in the seventh inning, and he didn't record an out. Gregory Polanco and Phillip Evans started the rally with back-to-back singles. Kevin Newman dropped a sacrifice bunt that Yoan Moncada made a running throw to first. It appeared the ball was in Danny Mendick's glove on replay, but he couldn't complete the catch. A throwing error charged to Moncada, Polanco scored, and the Pirates tied the game, 3-3.
Erik Gonzales put the Pirates ahead with a two-run single, and after failing to get the White Sox into extras in Houston, Crochet got tagged for four runs. Aaron Bummer replaced Crochet, but he allowed an RBI single to Bryan Reynolds to make it a 6-3 deficit.
Giolito had a good night on the mound, but Adam Frazier gave him a tough time. Forcing Giolito to throw 25 pitches in three plate appearances, Frazier tagged him for a solo home run in the third inning.
In the sixth inning, Frazier was down 0-2 in the count but fought his way back to draw a walk. After a groundout allowed Frazier to reach second base, Reynolds drove him in with a single to center field. Possibly the White Sox primary trade target, Frazier went 1-for-3, walk, home run, and scored two runs. He would be a good fit on the South Side.
Outside of Frazier, Giolito's final line was 6 IP 4 H 2 ER 2 BB 7 K, and his season ERA dropped to 3.80.
Game Notes:
- Yermin Mercedes had a pinch-hit single.
- Tim Anderson, Yoan Moncada, and Jose Abreu went a combined 2-for-11 and a walk.
- Ryan Burr tossed another scoreless inning stretching the streak to 8.1 innings. During that span, Burr has only allowed one hit while walking three.
