This weekend saw the unofficial point as the Chicago White Sox dropped from a “slow start” to “Ah, we might have a real problem here.” Getting into a chain with the Rangers as they try to clean the egg from their faces This deliberate baffling walk into their Thursday loss to the DodgersThe Sox recovered with Friday’s win and then proceeded to shake off any brief goodwill with a pair of agonizing losses in the overtime innings. The team that won All Central by 13 games last year is now sitting in six games behind the Twins, holding a record 27-31 and, worst of all, a 56-time run.
Having won just five games in 15, pressure is mounting on Sox coach Tony La Russa, who beat the rap last year on charges that he was too old and out of touch to be able to return and manage the MLB team but is struggling to avoid renewed scrutiny. If Trea Turner’s two-stroke free pass reintroduced the world to La Russa’s sometimes confusing approach to the game, this weekend’s losses were notable reinforcement that something… off… about these Sox. And fans got worried:
Saturday’s game, where the cheers come from, started well enough, with the White Sox leading 5-0 Interspersed with an explosion of Jake’s burger. But Lucas Giolito lost his grip on the match in the fifth inning, allowing the fly sack and then throwing the ball three runs to make it 5-4. The Sox responded to extend the lead to 7-4, but the game faltered and the game went into overtime, with the first five Rangers reaching the base and the Texans winning 11-9.
Sunday’s game was longer, but that only served to give fans more false hope. The Sox actually came back from a 3-1 deficit in the seventh inning to send this to the extras. But on Day 10, even after Kendall Grafman held the Rangers scoreless, Chicago couldn’t get their hands on their ghost runner. At the top of the eleven, Jose Ruiz seemed to lose the match when he allowed a three-stroke shot to Ezequiel Duran, but miraculously the White Sox collected some hits to extend things to 12. There, however, was Matt Foster – who was forced back into action after Allow three wins on Saturday – flop again to make it 8-6. And this time in the lower half, the decisive blow and then an embarrassing blunder by Louis Roberts finished the loss with a double play. There are few things worse to a manger on a hot seat than handing a toy man in a pointless dash to third base.
The Sox is currently dealing with a slew of injuries to key figures from 2021, including Tim Anderson, Lance Lynn and most recently ERA captain Michael Kopech, who had to abruptly leave the hill on Sunday. But with or without a full roster, they played below expectations all year long. Their starts were fine, with Kopech and Dylan Cease balancing the lower arms like disappointing Dallas Keuchel. But due in part to Kopech’s move to the start and Garrett Crochet’s long-term injury, their goal didn’t go well, with 11 blown saves that tied them to fourth in the league, and a comfortable ERA that put them 24th. Unfortunately, the hit wasn’t good enough To make up for these shortcomings, with the 25th worst OBP of 0.299 and the 26th worst deceleration of 0.366. Yasmani Grandal in particular suffered a massive slump ahead of Saturday’s exit with a hamstring injury, with the OPS dropping from a downhill from 0.939 in 93 games last year to 0.531 in 50 so far in 2022.
Is La Rosa responsible for all these problems? Probably not, but his outlandish strategies, struggles to keep leads, and mental lapses like the one that brought people home on Sunday didn’t quite help the realization that the football club was floundering and disorganized. And La Russa has been in the field long enough to know who’s to blame for these kinds of things.
“There is nothing going on with this team, in the end, I am not responsible for it,” He said no Rosa When asked about sarcasm on Saturday. “Never evade accountability and I will not start now.”
Well, I don’t know if This last statement is absolutely true. But at least La Russa seems aware of the increasing pressure, and the need not to let the Tigers pass them by in this next series. I mean, Sox behind Angels In the ranking of wild cards now, see what happened to them! Jerry Reinsdorf may not be so quick to pull the trigger as Arte Moreno was, but still, La Russa will probably avoid the barbershop until his team starts to turn him.
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