Chicago White Sox: Three keys to winning AL Central
The Chicago White Sox have a real good chance to win the American League Central Division.
Before the start of the 2020 season, many people selected the Chicago White Sox as a trendy pick to make the playoffs but not many of them had the Sox beating out the Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians to win the American League Central division. Here we are now and the White Sox are alone in first, playing meaningful baseball in September. The days of the rebuild are in the rearview mirror. They are about to embark on a crucial 17 game stretch in 17 days, which will decide whether or not the White Sox can capture their first division title since 2008. Eleven of those games will come against contending teams.
In a wild season where every game has added importance and the outside world is dealing with a global pandemic, a division title would be extra special for the southside. Throw in Jose Abreu and Tim Anderson’s MVP candidacy, Luis Robert being in line to win the Rookie of the Year, and Lucas Giolito throwing a no-hitter, it is shaping up to be a season to remember for Sox fans. A division crown would be a cherry on top.
While the White Sox will still make the postseason without a division crown, the difference could be a five seed difference. If the Sox take the division they will be a top-three seed. If they lose their lead they could fall all the way down to a 7 seed. The White Sox has feasted on the lesser competition this year so seeding is very important if they want a ring at the end of October. If they want to win the division here are three things that must happen:
Protect the Bullpen
The White Sox bullpen has been tremendous this season. Six pitchers out of their bullpen, (including the injured Aaron Bummer) have a sub-three ERA. Alex Colome, Ross Detwiler, and Codi Heuer all have eras in the ones. However, manager Rick Renteria has used the bullpen a ton this season. They are constantly being relied on as a bridge to get from the 6th inning to the 9th.
Taxing the bullpen like this will eventually take a toll on them. Cracks have already begun to show as evidenced by their collapse the other night against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the eighth inning. If the bullpen is constantly responsible for pitching three-plus innings every night they will get worn down which does not only spell trouble for the division race but for their chances in the postseason. A good bullpen is crucial for teams that want to make a deep playoff run. While the White Sox starting rotation has been solid this year they have not done the bullpen any favors.
White Sox starters Dylan Cease, Dane Dunning, Carlos Rodon, Gio Gonzalez, and Reynaldo Lopez, have yet to make it through seven innings in a start. Only Dallas Keuchel and Lucas Giolito have made it through the seventh inning at all with Keuchel only doing it twice and Giolito only doing it three times.
The bottom line is the White Sox need more innings from their starters. Part of this falls on Rick Renteria to have more faith in his starters to go deeper into games. Dane Dunning had a comfortable eight-run lead in the sixth inning against the Pirates when Renteria decided to pull him despite only throwing 78 pitches. The bullpen needs rest.
Beat the Twins and Indians
Two series, in particular, stand out on the schedule which is the Twins series and the Indians series. They could be the franchise’s most important series this decade. This sounds obvious but the Sox needs to take both series against the Twins and Indians. As it currently stands both teams are only a game back from the White Sox. The Sox have a losing record against both teams this year combining to go 4-8.
The Twins, whose offense has not been special this year and it has outscored the White Sox 48-28. Most of the damage has come from Nelson Cruz, which you might expect. The White Sox must avoid pitching to him at all costs. The Indians’ series will be especially important. Unlike the Twins, the Indians have beat the Sox with their elite pitching. Despite trading away their ace Mike Clevinger, the Indians still own the best starting rotation in baseball. Good pitching usually beats good hitting.
The White Sox are going to have to change that narrative while being able to match the Indians starters. The Indians offense leaves a lot to be desired and they have no bench depth so White Sox pitching is capable of holding their offense at bay. However, the Indians also have an advantage down the stretch because of their easy schedule with games against the Pirates and Tigers still to go. The White Sox have done a good job capitalizing on weak opponents but have struggled with teams over .500. It is time to step up and take down their rivals if they want to win the division.
Embrace small-ball
The White Sox offense has been mashing this season. They lead the American League in batting average, hits, RBI’s, and runs scored. The White Sox have done most of their damage with the long ball also leading the AL in home runs, slugging percentage, and OPS.
Hitting coach Frank Menechino warned us on the problems of leaning too heavily on the long ball. On August 20th he said, “if we’re only going to score with home runs we’re in trouble”. While the long ball has come easy to the Sox thus far it might not come so easily in the postseason. The pitching gets better and the weather gets colder. The Twins led the league in homers last season only to be swept out of the ALDS by the New York Yankees.
Relying on the home run won’t just be a problem in the playoffs but could also provide problems for the White Sox down the stretch. The weather also happens to get colder in September and the pitching they are in line to face provides a daunting task. They play the Indians, who have the best rotation in baseball; the Cubs, who have NL Cy Young candidate Yu Darvish; and the Reds, who have two aces in Trevor Bauer and Luis Castillos.
Dane Dunning earns his first career victory. light. Hot
The White Sox need to find other ways of manufacturing runs. They are capable of doing that because they hit for a high average and have an abundance of speed. Get guys on, move them over, and drive them in.