Yankees at White Sox
The New York Yankees were the hottest team in baseball through the first two weeks of June, but things are not going so well in the back half of the month. The Yankees will try to turn things around and close the month strong when they visit the Chicago White Sox for the start of a four-game series on Monday.
New York won eight of its first 11 games this month and looked poised to open a big gap in the American League East before dropping 10 of their last 12 to drop into a virtual tie for first place with the Boston Red Sox. "We're still tied for first place in our division," Yankees manager Joe Girardi told reporters. "We've had a pretty tough, poor two weeks." The White Sox are enduring their own slide with losses in six of the last seven and had a streak of 29 wins when leading in the seventh inning or later come to an end when the bullpen couldn't hold up in a 5-3 home loss to Oakland on Sunday. Chicago will turn to converted reliever David Holmberg on Monday while New York counters with rookie lefty Jordan Montgomery.
TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, WPIX (New York), WGN (Chicago)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Yankees LH Jordan Montgomery (5-4, 3.74 ERA) vs. White Sox LH David Holmberg (1-1, 2.84)
Montgomery is 3-0 in his last four starts and picked up a win on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels while allowing two runs and five hits in 5 2/3 innings. The South Carolina product struck out five in that turn and owns 71 punchouts in 74 2/3 total innings. Montgomery made his second career start against Chicago on April 17 and earned his first win while yielding three runs in six frames.
Holmberg has made five of his 14 appearances this season as a starter and is 1-1 with a 3.98 ERA in that role. The 25-year-old allowed four runs - two earned - and seven hits in 3 1/3 innings at Minnesota in his last start on Wednesday and worked one inning out of the bullpen on Friday. Holmberg is making his first career appearance against New York.
WALK-OFFS
1. Yankees OF Aaron Hicks suffered an injured oblique on Sunday and could miss 3-4 weeks.
2. Chicago rookie CF Adam Engel hit his first career homer on Sunday.
3. New York 2B Starlin Castro (wrist) received a cortisone shot on Saturday and is day-to-day.