The Rangers just faced the Astros, losing three out of four games, and by a combined score of 34-4 in the defeats. So if the White Sox felt like they had to keep pace with Astros, they really acted on those urges with a blowout in the first of their first-ever three-game set at Globe Life Park.
Dylan Cease endured early inefficiency to strike out 10 over five innings, after which four White Sox relievers kept the Rangers scoreless despite tons of traffic. On the other side of the ball, the Sox landed a fourth-inning knockout punch with a five-spot against Taylor Hearn. Combine it with Cleveland's own shutout loss to the Yankees, and the White Sox's magic number is down to 5.
The Sox offense allowed Cease to breathe easier in the fourth, which Romy González and his three-hit game started, and Luis Robert and his three-hit game finished. González opened with a double, and while César Hernández struck out, Billy Hamilton and Tim Anderson followed with walks to load the bases. Robert then unloaded them with a double to the right-center gap to give Cease a 5-0 lead.
And actually, Robert didn't finish it, per se. José Abreu followed with a double of his own to chase Hearn from the game, while Eloy Jiménez struck for a two-out single off reliever Jharel Cotton to make it 7-0.
From there, the only question was whether Cease could qualify for the win. He needed 50 pitches to get through two and 71 through three, so he probably couldn't absorb one more grind. But after the Sox offense took the drama out of the game, Cease decided not to add any of his own. He needed just 21 pitches to complete the fourth and fifth innings, even with an Isiah Kiner-Falefa single in the middle of it.
Cease was fastball-heavy, but not out of necessity. He had both breaking balls working well enough, getting nine swinging strikes on 27 sliders, and three whiffs out of his 13 knuckle curves. The Rangers afforded him a rebound opportunity after his disaster against the Red Sox, and he seized the night.
The White Sox offense also exorcised some frustration. They had 12 hits, and seven of them were doubles, including a pair by González, who made the start in right field with Andrew Vaughn and Adam Engel both on the shelf. Tim Anderson also had one, opening the game with a two-bagger that turned into the game's first run after a Robert single and a José Abreu sac fly. Consecutive doubles by Yoán Moncada and González made it 2-0 after two.
González kept the seventh inning alive with a two-out single, after which Hernández drove him home with his double to stave off a potential 0-for-5 night. When including the five walks drawn by the White Sox, every starter reached base except Yasmani Grandal, who saw his 30-game on-base streak come crashing to a halt. Perhaps he sacrificed one of his own powers to give his fellow Miami guy González his best game yet.
Bullet points:
*Anderson wasn't in the original lineup, but he felt good enough to play consecutive games, so here's hoping this signals a faster return to routine availability. He also reached 20 walks for just the second time in his career.
*Cease is up to 212 strikeouts on the season.
