[Biggp07]

We have a 3-game series on the road against the Chicago White Sox kicking off today. The White Sox play their games in Guaranteed Rate Field, which can be described as a neutral park. The building seats 40615 fans. With their record standing at 8 wins and 8 losses, the White Sox have a winning percentage of .500. They are in 2nd place in the Central Division, 0.5 games behind the leader. Their number of runs scored of 43 ranks 15th in the American League; their .225 batting average ranks 14th. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 50 runs (1st) with their starters compiling an ERA of 2.93, which ranks 1st. Their bullpen sports an ERA of 3.25, ranking 8th.

When playing against our Royals this season, they have a record of 2 wins and 2 losses.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP C. Ragans (1-0, 1.47 ERA) vs RHP E. Fedde (0-2, 4.19 ERA)
RHP M. Wacha (0-2, 3.98 ERA) vs RHP J. Kaprielian (2-1, 2.75 ERA)
RHP B. Singer (0-2, 5.21 ERA) vs RHP D. Thorpe (2-0, 0.87 ERA)

The top 5 players on their team are:
1. SP Garrett Crochet (Age: 24, Overall: 75, Potential: 80)
2. CL Tanner Banks (32, 55, 55)
3. CF Luis Robert Jr. (26, 55, 55)
4. SP Drew Thorpe (23, 50, 55)
5. RP John Brebbia (33, 50, 50)

Game Summary – April 15th - Royals Lose, 3-1, at Guaranteed Rate Field



The Chicago White Sox used a great performance from 31-year-old right-handed pitcher Erick Fedde to beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-1, at Guaranteed Rate Field. Fedde picked up the win for Chicago, going 8 innings. He gave up 1 run on 5 hits. He now sports a record of 1-2. Tanner Banks collected his 8th save. Had Brett Phillips not delivered a key base hit at the bottom of the seventh, the outcome might have been different. Instead, with two down and the bases loaded, Phillips hit a 2-run single. That made the score 3-1, in favor of the White Sox. Chicago manager Pedro Grifol commended his team for delivering "maximum effort." The win gives Chicago a record of 9-8.

GAME NOTES
Player of the Game: Erick Fedde
Ballpark: Guaranteed Rate Field
Weather: Clear skies (46 degrees), wind blowing right to left at 10 mph
Start Time: 6:40 PM CT
Time: 3:01
Attendance: 18195
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Game Summary – April 16th – Game Tied Until Rain Out - Game Suspended



I sat Blanco for this game and started Renfroe to find a spark, maybe somehow. Wacha was pitching well, but we were tied until the rain started pouring and the umpires finally called it until tomorrow. Is it an omen or a godsend? I’m not sure.

In the meantime, our minor league system needed about 10 free agent fills to keep the rosters up, so I made some signings of a few good quality guys and distributed them among mostly the low and high A teams. This helped to round out the rosters and keep guys playing the positions I want them to. But I delegated from here on out the free agent signings and releases to the managers with the caveat that there are certain prospects I’ll handle myself. I’ve got enough on my plate that I don’t need to be performing all that management of about 300 guys across 7 minor league teams as well as the major club. But I will have hands-on every once in a while, as the season progresses.

So far, we are 0 and 7 on the road. That is just awful. I’ve got to get this team’s offense turned around and right the ship, or we are sunk before we even get to deep water.

Game Summary – April 17th – Double-header, Double Skid

Royals Beaten By White Sox, 7-3



We resumed the game that was suspended last night with RHP Michael Soroka pitching for the CWS, and we had Jordan Lyles finish the game. We couldn’t capitalize on the suspension, so we dropped another one.

Though the conditions were not ideal, the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals came back from a rain delay to finish their game. The Chicago White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals, 7-3, at Guaranteed Rate Field. Yoan Moncada, who finished 3rd in the AL in batting average with .315 in 2019, starred for Chicago. He was 3 for 4 with a home run and 2 singles. He scored 2 times and drove in 2. The winner was Michael Soroka in relief. His record improves to 1-0. Jordan Lyles took the loss. Tanner Banks picked up his 9th save of the season. Moncada had a game-changing home run in the bottom of the sixth. On a 0-1 fastball from Jordan Lyles, he banged a 2-run home run to right, giving the White Sox a 4-2 lead. It was the 2nd home run of the year for Moncada.
"It was a solid team effort," said Moncada after the game. For the Royals, the loss makes their record 7-11.

GAME NOTES
Player of the Game: Yoan Moncada
Ballpark: Guaranteed Rate Field
Weather: Cloudy (47 degrees), wind blowing right to left at 18 mph
Start Time: 11:40 AM CT
Time: 4:15 Attendance: 16268
Special Notes: The game on the original date was suspended in the 5th inning due to bad weather and rescheduled.
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6-3 Loss Extends Kansas City Skid



Chicago parlayed a decent outing from starter Drew Thorpe into a solid win over the Kansas City Royals. The final score was 6-3. The save went to Dominic Leone, number 1 for him. The Royals fall to 7-12 and continue their lackluster start to the 2024 season. Luis Robert Jr. went 1 for 4 for Chicago. The 26-year-old center fielder had a key at-bat in the bottom of the third. With one out and runners on 1st and 3rd, he broke a 1-1 tie with a run-scoring single off Brady Singer. It was his 19th hit of the season.

"The vibe's good," said Chicago manager Pedro Grifol. "We've got to keep it going."

GAME NOTES
Player of the Game: Drew Thorpe
Ballpark: Guaranteed Rate Field
Weather: Cloudy (50 degrees), wind blowing out to right at 11 mph
Start Time: 3:10 PM CT
Time: 2:59
Attendance: 17801
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I don’t know what to think right now. I’m stunned. We are in last place in essentially all offensive stats, apart from Stolen Bases, which we ironically lead in 1st place, and strikeouts, which we stand in 2nd place. On the other hand, our pitchers can’t strike out anybody in the league! Not to mention, we are 0-9 on the road!