It was a pitcher’s dual in Anaheim, as both starters threw six-plus innings, each reaching double-digit strikeouts while only giving up one run.
For the White Sox, offensive production as a whole was hard to come by. Luis Robert Jr. tried to get the offense rolling with a solo home run in the first inning, however, the bats would go silent afterward. The lineup showed some signs of life in the fifth inning, after Andrew Vaughn singled and Jake Burger walked to put men on first and second with no outs. Unfortunately, Reid Detmers would go on to strike out the next three batters to leave the runners stranded.
On the mound, Dylan Cease was brilliant as he held the Angels in check for six innings, with his only blemish coming from a massive Shohei Ohtani solo home run. Other than that, the right-hander looked unhittable at times, especially against the heart of the Angels order where he struck out Mike Trout three times and Ohtani twice. He came back out for the seventh inning, but failed to record an out, allowing two singles before Joe Kelly extinguished any threats.
Reynaldo Lopez followed Kelly’s effort with a 1-2-3 eighth inning but walked Mike Trout to begin the ninth and was replaced by Aaron Bummer. The southpaw continued to struggle as began his inning by walking Ohtani. A wild pitch would move both him and Trout into scoring position with just one out. He would follow that up with a second wild pitch to bring home the winning run in a gut-wrenching loss for the Sox.
With the Monday night defeat, the White Sox sit at 34-46 on the season. The Twins also lost tonight, so the South Siders continue to avoid a slide in the standings and remain six games back in the AL Central.
W: Carlos Estevez (2-1) | L: Reynaldo Lopez (2-5)
Statcast Breakdown
White Sox Scoring Recap:
- Top of the 1st: Robert homered to left center. 1-0 White Sox.
Notable Performances
Dylan Cease: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K
Cease got his second quality start in a row on Monday, and this one was an absolute gem. Through 6 innings, Cease looked untouchable as he struck out 10 and didn’t allow any free passes. He gave up a couple of base hits before exiting the 7th inning without recording an out, but his one run effort was kept in tact by Joe Kelly.
Luis Robert: 2-for-4, HR, 2 K
Robert continued his All-Star-worthy run, as he was the Sox’s only source of run production in this game. His solo home run was his 22nd on the season, and his OPS improved to .897.
Next Game
After losing the first matchup of this three-game series, the Sox will try to salvage the series. Michael Kopech is set to take the mound against the two-way phenom that is Ohtani.
First pitch is scheduled for 8:38 CST, and fans will be able to catch the game on NBC Sports Chicago.
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