Chicago White Sox: Lance Lynn had one of his best games on Monday

The Chicago White Sox pitching staff have an abundance of riches and at the top of that heap is 34-year-old Lance Lynn. In game one of their doubleheader with Minnesota, Lynn took the hill for the first time since signing his two-year $38 million extension. Any thought the new deal would affect his performance was put to rest with a strong start in a 3-2 defeat.

Lynn pounded the strike zone through seven innings of work giving up only one run on Nelson Cruz’s game-tying home run in the sixth. He struck out four, walked one, and saw his league-leading ERA drop to 1.94. The game marked Lynn’s 12th start of the year in which he gave up one earned run or less.

Lynn did not come out to start the 8th inning despite only having thrown 89 pitches. He gave up just 5 hits and still seemed to have gas left in the tank to get to at least 100 pitches. Regardless, Lynn showed why he is one of the top pitchers in the game today.

Lance Lynn and the Chicago White Sox are the perfect match for each other.

His ERA is third overall behind Jacob deGrom’s 1.08 and San Francisco’s Kevin Gausman’s 1.85. His .189 batting average is good for eighth overall and second in the AL behind teammate Carlos Rodon’s .177. His nine wins put him in a tie for fourth in the American League.

Aside from his performance on the mound, Lynn has been a terrific leader.  In a press release, general manager Rick Hahn stated that Lynn, acquired in the offseason from Texas for pitcher Dane Dunning:

"“…quickly proved himself to be not only an All-Star-caliber addition to the front of our rotation but also the positive clubhouse presence that we envisioned at the time of the acquisition.”"

For as much as the White Sox are glad to have him in the fold for the next two years, Lynn couldn’t be happier to be staying put in Chicago. His signing with the team keeps him from testing the free-agent waters and in a position to help a team pointed in the right direction.

"“It’s nice not to worry about free agency and know where you’re going to be, but also knowing this is where you want to be and this is the group you want to be with to try to achieve something”, he told reporters.  “They put together a winner here.  And that’s what I want to be a part of and help push over the top and get a championship.”"

At the rate Lynn’s going, winning championships might not be the only thing hardware he’ll be adding to his resume. There could be a Cy Young Award in there as well. Oddsmakers have Lynn currently third behind Gerrit Cole and teammate Carlos Rodon. Hopefully, Lynn is able to keep up this level of pitching.