The White Sox are in a funk. After a 1-5 road trip, a date with the Seattle Mariners, and Carlos Rodón on the mound seemed like a great way to kick off the homestand. It was not. Tony La Russa summed it up perfectly in five words.
“The game was a struggle,” the White Sox manager said after the game.
Rodón had an undefeated record against the Mariners entering Friday night’s start, that perfect record did not last the night. He allowed a two-run homer to Luis Torrens in the second inning, then allowed an RBI single to Jake Bauers with two outs in the third. Rodón looked out of sorts all night and struggled to put away hitters with the efficiency he usually does. With the White Sox struggling offense leaving little margin for error, his five innings of three-run ball were not enough.
Yasmani Grandal was the only bright spot of the night for the White Sox. Outside of Grandal’s 438-foot blast for his 12th home run of the year in the second inning, the White Sox offense failed to muster anything off of Mariners starter, Yusei Kikuchi. In fact, Yoan Moncada was the only other player to get a hit off of him in 5 2/3 innings.
When you know, you know. pic.twitter.com/EYlhMvHEi3
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) June 26, 2021
The White Sox bullpen did not help the matter by allowing a hit parade. Every player in the Mariners lineup recorded at least one hit. Jake Fraley hit a two-run homer off of Jose Ruiz, then Torres hit his second home run of the game off of Zack Burdi. Matt Foster joined the mediocre pitching party by allowing Mitch Haniger to drive home the ninth run of the night. When Carlos Rodon left the game in the fifth inning the score was 3-1. By the time the White Sox bullpen was through the deficit had ballooned up to 9-3.
Not the best showing for a team welcoming fans back at 100 percent capacity for the first time all season.
“Every team has stretches where they struggle, whether it’s offensively, defensively, or pitching, and I think right now it seems like we’re struggling both ways,” Carlos Rodón said. “It’s that time of year where we just got to get out of this funk and move on from it.”
It is still only June, but it is clear that this lineup, as currently constructed, needs help. With countless members of the White Sox being asked to step up in the fact of injuries, some role players that overachieved early on are beginning to come back down to earth. Because of the constant reliance on role players, runs have been few and far between. You can only expect so much from the Brian Goodwin’s, Yermín Mercedes, and Danny Mendicks of the world.
The White Sox are 3-7 in their last 10 games. In that stretch, the offense has scored more than three runs in a game just twice. They have committed nine errors on defense and their pitching has allowed an average of nearly six runs (5.7) per game.
Rick Hahn has vowed to not waste so-called “sacred” opportunities to win the World Series. If that is the case then it is time to start working the phones. The White Sox has already been linked to rumors for Eduardo Escobar as well as Adam Frazier. According to Tony La Russa, the front office is actively trying to improve the banged-up roster.
“They’ve been making phone calls and keeping staff abreast of possibilities,” the skipper told the media before Friday’s game. “Fans should understand that if there’s something that’s reasonable, they’re going to try hard to make it happen.”
Friday’s 9-3 loss is proof that something needs to happen sooner rather than later.
