Chicago White Sox: 1 thing to watch vs the Cincinnati Reds

The Chicago White Sox are going to play the Cincinnati Reds twice this week. The first one is tonight and the second one is tomorrow to end the second to last series of the 2021 regular season. Cincinnati is fighting for their playoff lives but it looks like they are going to come up just short. They are a good team that has just had some bad luck this season.

There are plenty of things to watch out for as the White Sox end their season but there is one particular story to keep an eye on in this series. That is the play of Carlos Rodon of the Chicago White Sox. He is a top-flight pitcher in Major League Baseball right now but he is dealing with some arm issues.

Rodon has had a magnificent year in 2021 after some tough years that proceeded it. He is getting one more regular-season start this week and that will determine his status for the playoffs. It is going to come in the second game of this two-game set that they are playing.

The White Sox needs Rodon to be healthy. They have lots of really good pitchers on the roster so they would still have a chance without him but it would be much greater if he was good to go. Facing some great hitters like Nick Castellanos, Joey Votto, and Jonathan India is a great way to make one last start to see how you feel.

Carlos Rodon is one of the best pitchers that the Chicago White Sox have right now.

We know that when healthy, Rodon is filthy. He has the stuff that can strike out hitters and fool them enough to win games. Rodon has a no-hitter under his belt this season because of how dominant he was. If he can get some of that magic back, the White Sox will be in good shape. Hopefully, he can have a good showing against these Reds so that he makes the postseason roster.

Reynaldo Lopez will get the nod in the first game tonight. He has been great as a 6th starter to allow guys like Rodon to have an extra day of rest heading into the postseason. We can only hope that the White Sox did just enough to get this guy feeling good so he is healthy enough to go. There are a lot of cool things to pay attention to this week for the White Sox but Rodon’s status is by far the most important.