White Sox veteran pitcher struggles against Twins for second consecutive start. Despite early struggles, the All-Star most likely will turn season around.
Chicago White Sox starter Jose Quintana hasn’t recorded a victory to start the 2017 season. His last start on Saturday was a disaster as he was shelled early by the Minnesota Twins. Quintana was defeated in his second consecutive start by the Twins as the Sox lost 6-0.
Quintana gave up five earned runs in the first inning on Saturday as the Twins batted around. Despite giving up runs early, Quintana was able to rebound in the game and lasted 5.2 innings. Quintana recorded five walks to go along with five strikeouts, and he didn’t give up another earned run after the first inning.
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Although Quintana is without a win to start the season, this isn’t the first time he’s struggled to begin a campaign. His start on Saturday might have looked bad to Sox fans who are hoping his trade value doesn’t decrease, but it wasn’t a horrible outing. In 2015, Quintana began the season with a 1-1 record and 8.40 ERA through three starts. He is 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA so far this season.
Quintana’s start against the Detroit Tigers on April 19, 2015 was his worst start during that stretch. The left-handed starter would give up nine earned runs on 10 hits through four innings, including a grand slam by Yoenis Cespedes in the first inning. Unlike Quintana’s game on Satruday, he couldn’t hold off the Tigers during this start in the 2015 season.
While many Sox fans might believe the team should have traded Quintana during the offseason, the All-Star pitcher has shown throughout his career he can come back from awful starts. Quintana would finish the 2015 season with a 9-10 record and 3.36 ERA. The Colombian pitcher has time to turnaround his 2017 season.
The Sox haven’t provided much run support for Quintana to begin this season, and this is nothing new. Through three games started, the Sox have scored four runs, with three of those runs coming in Quintana’s Opening Day start on April 4 against Detroit. Quintana however has been outmatched in two consecutive starts by Twins ace Ervin Santana.
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With Quitana as the ace of the Sox pitching rotation, the South Siders offense will most likely be facing the opposing team’s best pitcher. This could make it harder for Quintana to get run support. If Quintana is going to rebound this season, he will need more run support from the Sox offense. He will also need to pitch better and go deeper into games. Quintana hasn’t pitched more than 6.1 innings in any of his three starts this season.