At least it wasn’t a shutout?
There was a game this evening in Chicago. The ball girl, Kayla Corbitt, was perhaps the star of the game, as she fielded better than most of the White Sox. A balk was called in the fourth to give the White Sox their first run, if that is any indicator of how this series might go. Oh, and someone brought a rabbit to the game.
The Starters
Vince Velásquez made it through five innings in an attempt to save bullpen arms. With only four recorded strikeouts and charged with seven earned runs, his night was not successful. Bennett Sousa thankfully came to the rescue and had more success, shutting the Yankees down for two innings. Perhaps Sousa can start?
Velasquez’s 101-pitch outing looked like this:
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23466857/Screen_Shot_2022_05_13_at_10.37.27_PM.png)
Baseball Savant
Gerrit Cole showed signs of struggle in the first inning as he loaded the bases, but the White Sox aren’t known for being great with RISP. Cole got himself out of a jam with ease, and went on to prove he’s not one to be messed with. Cole reached 97 pitches before being pulled in the seventh inning.
Cole’s outing looked like this:
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23466870/Screen_Shot_2022_05_13_at_10.45.52_PM.png)
Baseball Savant
Pressure Play
With bases loaded and two outs in the first inning, AJ Pollock had the chance to be a hero and put the White Sox up by two. Alas, Pollock struck out swinging. Pollock’s LI was 3.15.
Pressure Cooker
As mentioned above, AJ Pollock could’ve kept the Sox at least sort of in this game quite a few times, but failed to do so. Pollock clocked in with a 1.62 pLI.
Top Play
Giancarlo Stanton had this Yankees win secured in the first inning, with a two-run home run and a WPA of .200.
Top Performer
Giancarlo Stanton singlehandedly manhandled the White Sox pitching every chance he could. His game WPA was 0.19.
Smackdown
Hardest hit Josh Donaldson’s second-inning double came flying off of the bat at 111.4 mph.
Weakest contact Isiah Kiner-Falefa fluffed out a single at 46.1 mph in the second inning.
Luckiest hit Another single for Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and this one in the eighth only had an xBA of .070.
Toughest out Tim Anderson had potential in the fifth inning with an xBA of .750, but it was gloved.
Longest hit Giancarlo Stanton’s fourth-inning home run traveled 427 feet.
Magic Number: 11
Luis Robert has had a hit in 11 straight games. There is your silver lining.
Glossary
Hard-hit is any ball off the bat at 95 mph or more
LI measures pressure per play
pLI measures total pressure faced in-game
Whiff a swing-and-miss
WPA win probability added measures contributions to the win
xBA expected batting average