August 5, 2015

SALE AFTER STORE CLOSED

Chris Sale gave up another seven earned runs in back to back starts.

The White Sox have slipped back to the first two months of the season. Having one's ace with a 7.61 ERA since the break is not good. And after the horrible pitching by the Red Sox, the Sox hitters have cooled like a mini-Ice Age.

For all practical purposes, the White Sox are not going to catch the newly retooled Blue Jays in the wild card standings. In fact, the Jays may have their sights now on winning the East.

The big win streak before the All-Star break was a mirage. The good play by everyone on the roster was an illusion that kept the Sox team together. Players don't like to be in trade rumors. They don't want to uproot and move their families mid-season. They are creatures of habit so they want to stay with their current teams. Pessimists may say that the players played well before the trade deadline so as to convince the front office that it really was an underachieving squad who had turned around the season.

But the evidence is contrary. The White Sox continue to be a frustrating morass to their fans. When the Yankees came to town, they were pistol whipped by a better team. In a battle of aces, former Cub Chris Archer dominated Sale's teammates.

The White Sox are currently 50-55, 5 games under .500. They are 4.5 games behind the second wild card slot, but find themselves behind Detroit, Texas, Tampa Bay, Minnesota and Baltimore. It is improbable that the Sox can leap frog five teams to make the playoffs.  This season is basically over except for the formalities of playing the remainder of the schedule.

As such, this may be the most disappointing Sox season in recent memory. The off-season moves should have produced a better club. But this goes to show that team projections on paper do not necessarily equate to actual records on the field.