Twins at White Sox
The Chicago White Sox finally have their first win, and they have the right man on the mound to pick up their first series victory Sunday against visiting Minnesota. Ace left-hander Chris Sale will take the ball for the White Sox in the rubber match of the series, opposing Twins right-hander Phil Hughes.
J.B. Shuck's pinch-hit RBI single in the eighth inning lifted the White Sox to a 5-4 win Saturday to even the series at a game apiece and give Chicago it's first win in five tries. "It's a great feeling; this was a great win," Shuck told reporters. "This was a good team-building game right here, and I think we're going to roll with this one." The White Sox finally got their struggling offense going a bit with a season-high 11 hits Saturday, and third baseman Conor Gillaspie had three of those hits to raise his team-best batting average to .444. The Twins continued to struggle with the bats and are hitting .195 as a team with no everyday starter hitting over .250.
TV: 2:10 p.m. ET, FSN North (Minnesota), CSN Chicago
PITCHING MATCHUP: Twins RH Phil Hughes (0-1, 6.00 ERA) vs. White Sox LH Chris Sale (2014: 12-4, 2.17)
Hughes was not particularly sharp in his season debut, allowing a pair of home runs over six innings in a loss to Detroit on Opening Day. Slow starts are nothing new for the 28-year-old, who is now 6-13 with a 6.15 ERA in 29 career starts in March and April. Hughes is 4-4 with a 2.98 ERA in 15 games (11 starts) against the White Sox, but he was 1-2 with a 6.30 ERA in four outings against them last season.
Sale is expected to be kept to around 95 pitches after being limited in the spring by a foot injury suffered jumping off the back of his pickup truck Feb. 27. The three-time All-Star hasn't faced big-league hitters yet this season but he racked up 20 strikeouts in two minor-league starts this spring. Sale is 6-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 16 games (eight starts) against the Twins and went 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA in three outings against them last season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Chicago 1B Jose Abreu has reached safely in every game this season.
2. Twins 3B Trevor Plouffe is hitting .383 with three doubles, six RBIs, eight walks and seven runs scored in his last 12 games against the White Sox.
3. White Sox RHP David Robertson struck out the side for his first save for the club Saturday and has held the Twins scoreless in 22 of his 24 career appearances against them.