Orioles at White Sox
Pedro Alvarez has been flexing his muscle over the last week and the Baltimore Orioles are benefiting from the power display. With six homers in his last five contests, Alvarez looks to continue his torrid hitting on Saturday as the American League East-leading Orioles attempt to secure a series victory against the host Chicago White Sox.
Alvarez belted a pair of solo homers in Friday's 7-5 win to improve to 13-for-28 with seven RBIs and as many runs scored in his last seven contests. Baltimore has answered a five-game skid by winning four of its last five games while Chicago has dropped seven of nine to fall to 7-14 since the All-Star break. Jose Abreu has gone deep in back-to-back contests on the heels of a homerless drought of 32 contests. The 29-year-old Cuban is 23-for-68 in 17 career games versus the Orioles and 3-for-5 with a blast against Saturday starter Chris Tillman.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, MASN2 (Baltimore), WGN (Chicago)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Orioles RH Chris Tillman (14-3, 3.46 ERA) vs. White Sox LH Carlos Rodon (2-8, 4.67)
Tillman settled for a no-decision on Sunday despite allowing two runs on five hits in 5 2/3 innings at Toronto. The 28-year-old received the same fate in his last outing versus Chicago, against which he is 3-1 with a 3.29 ERA in five career outings. Baltimore owns a 19-4 mark in 23 starts this season by Tillman, who has permitted just two runs or fewer in five of his last six trips to the mound.
A near four-week absence on the disabled list did nothing to alter the fortunes of Rodon, who yielded five earned runs in 6 1/3 innings of a 6-4 setback at Minnesota. Baltimore has taken to task the 23-year-old, who is 0-2 with 10 runs yielded on 12 hits in 13 innings in three outings. Rodon's struggles to keep the ball in the park have underscored a tumultuous season, as he has allowed two homers in each of his last three trips to the mound.
WALK-OFFS
1. Chicago LF Melky Cabrera is 2-for-19 in his last four games overall and 4-for-22 versus Baltimore this season.
2. Orioles CF Adam Jones is 8-for-19 with two doubles and three RBIs versus the White Sox in 2016.
3. Chicago DH Avisail Garcia has three homers, six RBIs and four runs scored in his last four games.