White Sox 10, Twins 1: Bailey Ober Bends, Bullpen Breaks In Blowout

Box Score:
Starting Pitcher: Bailey Ober: 4 ⅓ IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K (84 Pitches, 50 Strikes, 59.5%)
Home Runs: Brooks Lee (23)
Bottom 3 WPA: Andrew Morris (-0.14), Josh Bell (-0.08), Kody Clemens (-0.08)
Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant):

Here we are again, with the Twins somehow still playing for their playoff lives despite not being able to sustain any level of consistent success. They turned to Bailey Ober Sunday night with the division-leading White Sox relying on a bullpen game.

Ober was in trouble immediately, allowing a leadoff double to Sam Antonocci. But he bore down, striking out the dangerous Miguel Vargas before retiring Munetaka Murakami and Andrew Benintendi to end the threat.

The second inning began with a strikeout to Colson Montgomery, but he would reach on a wild pitch. Braden Montgomery walked, then Ober went to work. He got Tristan Peters on a groundout, then got ahead of Chase Meidroth before getting five consecutive whiffs (one was a foul tip, to be fair) to pitch out of his second jam.

The Twins, meanwhile, were flailing away at opener Bryan Hudson’s Ober impression (He stands 6’8” with minimal velocity). Hudson faced the minimum through 1 ⅔ innings, then gave way to hard-throwing Jordan Hicks, who struck out three of the four hitters he faced.

The Sox got two men on in the third, but again, Ober pitched his best when he needed to, striking out Colson Montgomery on a nasty slider below the zone, moving his total number of stranded runners to five, with the White Sox 0-7 with runners in scoring position.

Sox lefty Hagen Smith took over for the fourth and was nails, striking out four in three perfect innings. He doesn’t throw that hard but has some great ride on his fastball at the top of the zone- you can see why the Sox called him up for the stretch run.

After an uneventful fourth, Ober allowed a second leadoff double to Antonocci in the fifth. This time, Murakami was able to scald a single into right field for the game’s first run, chasing Ober from the game. Kody Funderburk came on and quelled the threat.

He would not be so fortunate in the sixth. Peters, who has killed the Twins, delivered a left-on-left double down the line, prompting Derek Shelton to insert Andrew Morris. Morris walked Meidroth before retiring Teel on a grounder. But Antonocci grounded a ball through the drawn-in infield to score two. He would be credited with his third double, as the ball deflected slowly into center field. The Twins put Murakami on, and lefty-masher Randal Grichuk (who had pinch-hit for Benintendi earlier against Funderburk) managed to rope a single into left field to extend the lead to four.

Brooks Lee did deliver a long home run in the seventh off occasional closer Grant Taylor. Jeffers then walked, but the Twins wouldn’t be able to add any more traffic.

The White Sox had no such issues against Taylor Rogers. They loaded the bases on a single, hit-by-pitch and a walk, then Shelton went to Garrett Acton to clean up the mess. He did not, walking Vargas on four pitches to force in the fifth Sox run.

Acton has decent stuff, but he had no answers for the Sox lineup in the eighth. He allowed a leadoff homer to Grichuk (who went 2-2 with said homer and a walk), then walked both Montgomeries before Peters hit a ground-rule double to truly ice the game. Kyle Teel would later hit a three-run home run, in case anyone had any doubts.

Stuff I’m Tracking:

• Ober’s evolution into the second coming of Paul Byrd is going pretty good. His ability to command the baseball is well known, but being able to frustrate hitters by never throwing what the batter expects is the next level. Pitching against the American League’s best offense in a hitter’s park, I’ll take his performance today.
• Walker Jenkins sure has a lot more swing-and-miss in his game than anticipated. It probably is too soon to bench him, but it sure would be nice if he could make some good contact ahead in the count.
• Morris should be a big part of the bullpen next year. This year, he’s cooked, mentally.
• Eric Hosmer gets to work national TV broadcasts now? I was under the impression that nobody liked him after he wore out his welcome in San Diego.

What’s Next: The Twins head to Detroit for a three-game series with the Tigers. The Twins have not announced a starter, but it would figure to be Connor Prielipp’s turn—although his last start followed an opener with good success. They will have a rematch against the de facto ace of the Tigers, Troy Melton (7-4, 2.20 ERA), who they punished last week for five runs, including two home runs.

Postgame Interviews: Coming soon

Bullpen Usage Chart:

Do you approve of Twins ownership?

Do you approve of Twins ownership?

• Do you approve of Twins ownership? Required
  

  
• Save

See All Twins Polls >