Game Thread: Athletics (41-52) at White Sox (47-45)

Well it looked like this season’s magical run was made for the storybooks at the end of June. Unfortunately for the White Sox, July has had a mind of its own. After entering the month with a 45-39 record, the South Siders have won just two of their last eight games and are now tied for the top spot in the AL Central. I certainly may have gotten ahead of myself when I stated “why not us?” after the 22-1 shellacking of the Kansas City Royals, but now is not the time to start pointing fingers. Winning is all that matters.

Standing in the way of the White Sox getting back on track are the Athletics, who at the time remain homeless. That’s probably why they are one of the few teams who sport a better record on the road than at “home.” The Athletics are coming into this series as one of the coldest teams in baseball. With a 3-13 over their last 16 games, they have quickly played themselves out of the AL West division race (if you can call it that, the division may be worse than the AL Central).

Even with a recent three-game sweep at the hands of the Boston Red Sox, Chicago still has the fourth-best home record in all of baseball. Unfortunately, they look like a team that is completely lost. After issues with the bullpen reared their ugly heads against the Cleveland Guardians, their bats have now gone silent. The South Siders have scored just two runs over their last three games but they have a great chance to reverse their fortunes against an Athletics team that has allowed the second-most runs in the majors this year. With the only other team allowing more being Colorado, it seems fair to tab the Athletics as the true “worst pitching staff” in the game, with the Rockies having to deal with the elevation at Coors Field.

If the White Sox struggle to score runs tonight, it certainly won’t be because of the pitching from the Athletics as Jacob Lopez trots out onto the mound for the visitors. With a career ERA of 5.11 and an ERA more than seven this season, there will be plenty of opportunities to score runs for the White Sox. The only caveat of Lopez starting is he often gets a fair amount of run support. Even with a 7.62 ERA in May, he still left the month with a 2-2 record.

As for the White Sox, they are sending out the ever-improving Sean Burke. Although his 5-4 record doesn’t show it, he’s been a reliable pitcher for the South Siders this year, wielding a 3.56 ERA on the season. Burke has suffered just two losses over his last 14 starts and has given up more than three runs just once since the middle of May. As long as Burke has his normal stuff, Chicago will have a massive advantage in the pitching battle tonight.

The player to watch tonight is Munetaka Murakami, who is coming back at just the right time for the White Sox. After suffering a Grade 2 hamstring strain in late May, he finally rejoins the lineup. While the White Sox did fairly well without him, his presence back in the lineup will be a huge addition for a team that has held its own in the AL Central race during his absence. If he can produce like he did before the injury, there is little doubt that the White Sox have a good shot at not only winning the AL Central, but also securing a bye to the ALDS as one of the top two seeds in the American League as well.

Here is the starting lineup for your Chicago White Sox:

Here is the lineup for the Athletics:

First pitch is 6:40 p.m. CST. You can watch on CHSN or listen on ESPN Chicago 1000. Let us know your thoughts and predictions below!

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