The White Sox head to Cleveland riding a series win over Baltimore, and they’re bringing a lineup that looks different from the usual script. Will Venable is leaning lefty-heavy against Guardians right-hander Slade Cecconi, and the top of the order has a few notable tweaks as Chicago opens at Progressive Field at 5:40 CT.
Chicago’s lineup starts with Sam Antonacci in left field, followed by Miguel Vargas at third and Kyle Teel behind the plate. Andrew Benintendi stays in the cleanup spot as his hot streak continues, while Colson Montgomery drops to fifth after a rough stretch getting on base. Braden Montgomery bats sixth in right field, with Chase Meidroth sliding down to seventh, Tristan Peters in center and Jacob Gonzalez at first.
- Sam Antonacci, LF
- Miguel Vargas, 3B
- Kyle Teel, C
- Andrew Benintendi, DH
- Colson Montgomery, SS
- Braden Montgomery, RF
- Chase Meidroth, 2B
- Tristan Peters, CF
- Jacob Gonzalez, 1B
It’s the kind of order that gives Venable multiple ways to attack a right-hander, and there’s real reason for optimism at the plate. Antonacci, Vargas and Benintendi all stay positioned near the top, while Teel gets the chance to hit third. Montgomery has also homered off Cecconi before, so the move down the order doesn’t erase the possibility of another big swing.
Meidroth’s slide is the other headline here. He’s been moved to seventh amid his struggles with runners on, and the numbers tell the story: he’s batting .217/.279/.317 this season with runners in scoring position. Even so, he has taken Cecconi deep in the past, so there’s at least some history working in his favor.
Cleveland counters with a lineup that looks light on punch against White Sox starter Davis Martin. Travis Bazzana leads off at second base, followed by Chase DeLauter, Kyle Manzardo, Kahlil Watson, Brayan Rocchio, Cooper Ingle, Gabriel Arias, Patrick Bailey and Steven Kwan in center.
- Travis Bazzana, 2B
- Chase DeLauter, DH
- Kyle Manzardo, 1B
- Kahlil Watson, RF
- Brayan Rocchio, SS
- Cooper Ingle, LF
- Gabriel Arias, 3B
- Patrick Bailey, C
- Steven Kwan, CF
The names to watch for the Guardians are Kwan and Manzardo, both of whom have seen Martin plenty and have posted around a 1.000 OPS against him. That’s the main wrinkle in an otherwise thinner-looking order.
Martin comes in throwing some of his best baseball of the season. After the worst outing of his young career on June 16 against the New York Yankees, he has settled in hard.
Over his last two starts, he’s worked 11.1 innings and allowed just one run. In his most recent appearance against the Kansas City Royals, he tossed 5.1 shutout innings.
Cecconi has also turned things around after a rough beginning with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Over his last seven starts, he has a 2.84 ERA across 38 innings with 28 strikeouts, and he blanked the Seattle Mariners for six innings in his last outing. Still, the White Sox lineup has enough thump that they may be the club capable of breaking through against him.
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For the White Sox, the timing matters because they are in the same conversation for the same kind of help. Any pursuit of rotation depth can quickly turn into a race, and the possibility of both Chicago clubs chasing the same arm only adds another layer to a deadline that already figures to be busy. The question now is whether the Sox are willing to push hard enough to keep pace if the market starts moving faster than expected. [Read more 🡒]