White Sox at Royals
The Chicago White Sox got off to a strong start but have since come back
to the pack in the American League Central as they being a four-game
road series against the defending World Series champion Kansas City
Royals on Thursday. Chicago once possessed a 23-10 record but has lost
11 of its last 15 games to lead second-place Cleveland by a half-game
and the third-place Royals by two games.
Chicago's offense is buried in a deep slide, scoring three or fewer runs in eight of the last nine games, and manager Robin Ventura is closely watching his team's temperament. "It's part of the grind, and these guys have grinded through a lot of stuff in their career," Ventura told reporters, "and the young guys are learning from the old guys of what it's like to go through tough patches, and that's part of playing baseball." Kansas City is on the upswing by winning four straight series, including taking two of three at Chicago last week. Royals manager Ned Yost told reporters after Wednesday's 7-5 loss to Minnesota that the club's recent success can be attributed to a revival of what was a struggling offense to go along with the stellar bullpen raising its level a notch.
TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, CSN Chicago, FSN Kansas City
PITCHING MATCHUP: White Sox RH Miguel Gonzalez (0-1, 4.57 ERA) vs. Royals LH Danny Duffy (0-0, 2.13)
Gonzalez lost to the Royals last Saturday when he gave up two runs and six runs in six innings and struck out a season-best eight. He is 1-4 with a 4.66 ERA in five career starts against Kansas City and has been unable to figure out Jarrod Dyson (7-for-8). Gonzalez is 0-7 over his last 12 big-league starts dating back to a win on July 25, 2015 as a member of the Baltimore Orioles.
Duffy pitched 4 1/3 shutout innings - allowing four hits - when matched up against Gonzalez last Saturday. He is making his third start since returning to the rotation and will be limited to between 70-to-75 pitches on Thursday. Duffy is 3-2 with a 3.33 ERA in 12 career appearances (10 starts) against the White Sox and has struggled with Jose Abreu (7-for-19, one homer) and center fielder Austin Jackson (8-for-25, one homer).
WALK-OFFS
1. Royals 3B Mike Moustakas (knee) missed the three-game series against Minnesota and is questionable for Thursday's contest.
2. Abreu is 6-for-8 over the last two games after going through a 2-for-20 rut for the White Sox.
3. Kansas City C Salvador Perez was 9-for-12 in the Minnesota series and is batting .432 during an 11-game hitting streak.