2020 OOTP sim: Clock runs out on Tampa
CHICAGO — Just to prove how wacky these season simulations can be, the stellar, young Tampa Bay Rays entered action at Sox Park at just 14-22, stuck in the basement of a very weak AL East.
And on a chilly, gusty Chicago night, the White Sox kept them there, with a 5-4 victory.
The South Siders did all of their damage in the third inning, putting up a crooked number and running up a 5-0 cushion. Tim Anderson led off with a double, Yoán Moncada followed with a walk, and Leury García sacrificed to move both runners over. That out paid off when Eloy Jiménez slapped a sharp single the other way, scoring both runners and giving the White Sox a 2-0 lead. One out later, Yasiel Puig continued to endear himself to his new club by yanking a 2-1 pitch from Tyler Glasnow out deep to left, doubling the lead. Nomar Mazara pitched in, going back-to-back with Puig by taking an 0-2 pitch and yanking it into the teeth of a 19 mph wind blowing in from right, soaring it over the right-field foul pole to move the score to 5-0 and bouncing Glasnow (who entered with a 2.88 ERA) from the ball game.
The third could've been far uglier for the White Sox, as starter Dylan Cease allowed a leadoff double to Michael Brosseau, but the spry fireballer bounded off the mound to scoop up Mike Zunino's bunt to the first-base side of the mound and nailed Brousseau at third base for the first out. Later, with runners on the corners and two out, García made a spectacular diving catch in center field that saved two runs.
Cease, though he balked in Tampa's second run of the game in the sixth, was excellent, hurling six innings of two-hit, three-walk, seven-K ball, ending with a game score of 68, his second-best outing of the season.
Carson Fulmer, however, was not so lucky, as the righty has taken his April status as the club's top reliever and jeopardized it with another shaky outing. He took the ball from Cease in the seventh and dished out a homer to the second batter he faced, leaking another run in the eighth before a rescue from newcomer Tony Watson.
All Watson did in his White Sox debut was save Fulmer's hide. The lefthander inherited runners at second and third with nobody out and escaped the jam: a whiff of Brandon Lowe, a fly out to Puig (Austin Meadows, at third base, would not challenge the Wild Horse's arm in mid-right field) and a fly out to center.
Has the trade with the Giants paid dividends, or what?
Alex Colomé came on and aced his sixth save with a clean ninth.
The White Sox have now won three straight one-run games, and have moved back above .500 at 18-17, 4 ½ back of first.
On Wednesday, the Good Guys try to secure the series by sending out slumping starter Dallas Keuchel against Blake Snell (1-4, 5.62 ERA). Joltin' Joe Resis will have your game recap!
