Sunday Night Baseball: White Sox at Tigers
Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers (-142, 9.5)
A key clash in the tight American League Central takes place under the ESPN lights Sunday night when the Tigers host the White Sox at Comerica Park in Detroit in a battle of division leaders.
Sunday?s game matches Chicago left-hander Clayton Richard (3-3 5.00 ERA) against Detroit right-hander Rick Porcello (9-6 4.40 ERA) in a battle of young arms looking to re-assert themselves.
2-1 Oddity
Heading into this pivotal four-game series, the Tigers were riding high atop the AL Central until a string of 2-1 losses allowed the White Sox an opportunity to close the gap.
Detroit?s 2-1 loss to Seattle Thursday marked its fourth loss in the previous five games - all by the score of 2-1.
"If you score one run a game, you aren't going to win," Tiger manager Jim Leyland told reporters. "I don't care how good your pitching is. You can have three (Sandy) Koufaxes and three (Don) Drysdales, you're still not going to win. Let me make it real simple for you? score one run a game, you lose - 99.9 percent of the time, probably."
Bend it like Beckham
White Sox 3B Gordon Beckham has been a pleasant surprise for manager Ozzie Guillen.
After being a 2008 first-round selection, Beckham has made a quick ascent through the White Sox system to become a starter. Guillen admits he never thought the former Georgia star would make an impact so quickly.
"I never thought this kid was going to play this well this fast. The problems he has at third base, we knew that was going to come because he never played there before. This guy is cold blood. He's not afraid, he's cocky in a good way, and it helps him,? Guillen told reporters.
While Beckham's defense is still a task in progress, (he?s switching from shortstop to third), he was hitting .358 BA with 23 RBIs in his previous 32 games entering this series.
No Halladay here
Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi was overheard on his cell phone earlier this week asking for Dave Dombrowski, his counterpart with the Detroit Tigers.
When asked about the call, Ricciardi responded by saying it was "Not about Roy Halladay. Something else."
Meanwhile the Pale Hose interest in Halladay has also made news. The reality of consummating a trade, however, is slim-to-none.
"To make that work would be a lot of money and a lot of players involved. It's nice to say we need this guy or that guy, but it's not easy (to make trades). I don't think we'll give up half the organization for one guy," Guillen told the press.
Tale of the tape
The 20-year old rookie Porcello recorded his ninth victory this season when he defeated the Mariners 9-7 Tuesday. Porcello coughed up two homers as he allowed five runs on nine hits over five innings. He walked one and struck out four.
He is 11-6 in his 17-team starts with the Tigers with a 1.48 WHIP, including 6-2 at home (all this year). But he?s just 1-2 with a 9.47 ERA in his last three starts. Like his first-year counterpart, Ricky Romero of Toronto, Porcello appears to be hitting a rookie wall.
Chicago?s Richard allowed just four hits over a career-high eight innings in a 3-2 home loss against Tampa Bay Tuesday. He walked two and struck out seven. Richard was 1-2 with a 10.80 ERA in his previous five starts.
The large lefty has won six of his 13 team starts this season with a 1.51 WHIP, but is 0-3 his last three outings with a 7.86 ERA. He is also 1-4 with an 8.43 ERA in July and 0-2 with an 11.25 ERA on Sundays his career team starts.
The bottom line
Neither pitcher brings a lot to like into this fray. Both are unraveling, one a rookie that is not pressure-tested, the other a ?tweener. One is not likely to out pitch the other.
Instead, let?s take advantage of the fact that both teams have been dead unders to this point of the season. Because of the value they bring, and the fact that neither hurler is in impressive form, look for a well-lit scoreboard tonight. Over and out.
Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers (-142, 9.5)
A key clash in the tight American League Central takes place under the ESPN lights Sunday night when the Tigers host the White Sox at Comerica Park in Detroit in a battle of division leaders.
Sunday?s game matches Chicago left-hander Clayton Richard (3-3 5.00 ERA) against Detroit right-hander Rick Porcello (9-6 4.40 ERA) in a battle of young arms looking to re-assert themselves.
2-1 Oddity
Heading into this pivotal four-game series, the Tigers were riding high atop the AL Central until a string of 2-1 losses allowed the White Sox an opportunity to close the gap.
Detroit?s 2-1 loss to Seattle Thursday marked its fourth loss in the previous five games - all by the score of 2-1.
"If you score one run a game, you aren't going to win," Tiger manager Jim Leyland told reporters. "I don't care how good your pitching is. You can have three (Sandy) Koufaxes and three (Don) Drysdales, you're still not going to win. Let me make it real simple for you? score one run a game, you lose - 99.9 percent of the time, probably."
Bend it like Beckham
White Sox 3B Gordon Beckham has been a pleasant surprise for manager Ozzie Guillen.
After being a 2008 first-round selection, Beckham has made a quick ascent through the White Sox system to become a starter. Guillen admits he never thought the former Georgia star would make an impact so quickly.
"I never thought this kid was going to play this well this fast. The problems he has at third base, we knew that was going to come because he never played there before. This guy is cold blood. He's not afraid, he's cocky in a good way, and it helps him,? Guillen told reporters.
While Beckham's defense is still a task in progress, (he?s switching from shortstop to third), he was hitting .358 BA with 23 RBIs in his previous 32 games entering this series.
No Halladay here
Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi was overheard on his cell phone earlier this week asking for Dave Dombrowski, his counterpart with the Detroit Tigers.
When asked about the call, Ricciardi responded by saying it was "Not about Roy Halladay. Something else."
Meanwhile the Pale Hose interest in Halladay has also made news. The reality of consummating a trade, however, is slim-to-none.
"To make that work would be a lot of money and a lot of players involved. It's nice to say we need this guy or that guy, but it's not easy (to make trades). I don't think we'll give up half the organization for one guy," Guillen told the press.
Tale of the tape
The 20-year old rookie Porcello recorded his ninth victory this season when he defeated the Mariners 9-7 Tuesday. Porcello coughed up two homers as he allowed five runs on nine hits over five innings. He walked one and struck out four.
He is 11-6 in his 17-team starts with the Tigers with a 1.48 WHIP, including 6-2 at home (all this year). But he?s just 1-2 with a 9.47 ERA in his last three starts. Like his first-year counterpart, Ricky Romero of Toronto, Porcello appears to be hitting a rookie wall.
Chicago?s Richard allowed just four hits over a career-high eight innings in a 3-2 home loss against Tampa Bay Tuesday. He walked two and struck out seven. Richard was 1-2 with a 10.80 ERA in his previous five starts.
The large lefty has won six of his 13 team starts this season with a 1.51 WHIP, but is 0-3 his last three outings with a 7.86 ERA. He is also 1-4 with an 8.43 ERA in July and 0-2 with an 11.25 ERA on Sundays his career team starts.
The bottom line
Neither pitcher brings a lot to like into this fray. Both are unraveling, one a rookie that is not pressure-tested, the other a ?tweener. One is not likely to out pitch the other.
Instead, let?s take advantage of the fact that both teams have been dead unders to this point of the season. Because of the value they bring, and the fact that neither hurler is in impressive form, look for a well-lit scoreboard tonight. Over and out.
