The White Sox are back in another tricky pitching setup as they try to avoid getting swept by the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Chicago goes into the finale at 65-60, while the Cubs sit at 74-53. First pitch is set for 1:20 CT, with the game on CHSN and ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM.
Will Venable is sticking with the lefty-heavy look he used Tuesday night, with one change behind the plate. Jake Rogers gets the nod over Drew Romo in the nine spot.
Rogers is considered the stronger bat, though he still hasn’t picked up a hit in a small White Sox sample. Romo has been trending up lately, hitting .182/.217/.455 over his last seven games.
The rest of the White Sox order is the same one they used in the previous game: Sam Antonacci leads off in left, Munetaka Murakami bats second at first, Miguel Vargas hits third at third base, Andrew Benintendi is the DH, Braden Montgomery follows in right, Colson Montgomery is at short, Chase Meidroth handles second, and Tristan Peters starts in center.
Colson Montgomery is one of the names to watch after a three-hit night, and he’s still looking for more power in August with just one homer so far this month. Miguel Vargas could also have a real chance to do damage; he’s seen Cubs starter Clay Holmes three times and owns a 1.167 OPS against him. Peters is another White Sox hitter starting to show life, coming off a two-hit game and carrying a .429/.478/.714 line over his last seven games.
The Cubs counter with Pete Crow-Armstrong in the DH spot, followed by Seiya Suzuki in right, Alex Bregman at third, Michael Busch at first, Nico Hoerner at short, Pedro Ramírez at second, Carson Kelly behind the plate, Ian Happ in left and Tyrone Taylor in center.
On the mound, the White Sox are going bullpen-first again. Sean Newcomb will open, and he’s been one of their steadiest arms with a 2.51 ERA in 46 appearances, covering 68 innings.
Venable may lean on him for more than a quick inning if it helps preserve the rest of the relief group. José Urquidy is expected to handle the bulk of the innings after that.
For Chicago, the task is simple: find enough offense to back a patchwork pitching plan and keep the series from ending in another lopsided loss. Clay Holmes is standing in the way, and he arrives after a strong outing in which he threw 6.2 innings and allowed just one hit and one walk. The White Sox will need to string together runs in bunches if they want to leave Wrigley without an ugly sweep hanging over them.
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Huascar Brazobn Is Already Giving The White Sox A Bullpen Problem
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Brazobns results in Chicago have looked a lot shakier than the version the White Sox were hoping to get, with the kind of inconsistency that can turn a low-key bullpen move into a real roster question. The larger concern is whether this is just a rough stretch or the start of a familiar seasonal slide, because if the struggle keeps going, Chicago has the flexibility to make a move and reset the situation before it becomes a bigger problem. [Read more 🡒]
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The injury was traced to a cramp that affected his glove hand, something the Cubs and Gausman later explained after he was unable to keep going at full capacity. The issue surfaced during the middle innings and lingered long enough to alter the shape of the outing, leaving Chicago to piece together the rest of the game while wondering how much the early departure changed the outcome. [Read more 🡒]
Two White Sox Players Just Added Fuel To A Cubs MVP Debate
Pete Crow-Armstrong has become one of the louder names in the National League MVP conversation, and the debate only got a little more interesting when ESPNs Jesse Rogers checked in with players around the game. In Rogers sample, 15 of 21 players backed the Cubs outfielder over Shohei Ohtani, a sign of how much traction Crow-Armstrongs season has gained even with a superstar like Ohtani sitting on the other side of the argument.
Among the voices Rogers gathered were two from across town, White Sox pitcher Sean Burke and catcher Drew Romo, who both landed on Ohtani. Their reasoning pointed back to the two-way impact Ohtani brought earlier in the season, a reminder that the MVP race is not being judged only by what has happened lately at the plate. Crow-Armstrongs recent offensive push has kept the Cubs firmly in the conversation, but the split among players shows just how much weight Ohtanis unique season still carries. [Read more 🡒]