Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011
Posted: 10:36 p.m.Updated: 11:27 p.m.
By Brett Ballantini
CSNChicago.com White Sox InsiderFollow @CSNChi_Beatnik
Box scorePhoto gallery
VIDEO: Floyd dissects one bad pitch
VIDEO: Crede still has back pain
Relative to the U.S. Cellular Field Massacree that took place on Monday and the series from hell in Motown two weekends ago, a 5-0 whitewash at the hands of presumptive AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander was practically a gift from the Detroit Tigers to the Chicago White Sox.
Sure, the game was hardly in doubt, but the White Sox did show some fight before falling to Verlander for the fifth time this season, including two bases-loaded rallies, as well as a first-and-third in the first. Natch, the Pale Hose stranded 10 for the game and was a perfect 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
We didnt have the big hit, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen cut-and-pasted postgame. Against a pitcher of Verlanders caliber you have to get it done before he makes his pitches.
READ: Ozzie hands out 2011 grades
The deciding blow came off the bat of Victor Martinez, who blasted a towering, three-run shot out to right to push Detroits lead to 4-0.
MLB
Gavin hit the wall after Martinezs homer, according to Guillen. He put everything into that nine-pitch at-bat.
The longball came on a 3-2 cutter, which has not only been Gavin Floyds most effective pitch this season, its been the most effective cutter in the major leagues. Yet Guillen knew that something bad might be coming after walking Bengals slugger Miguel Cabrera to get to Martinez.
I told Joey, Look at his eyes, Guillen said of Martinez. Theres a lot of pride a hitter feels when someone is walked in front of you, like, You think Cabrera is better than me? But I cant pitch to Cabrerahes the best hitter in the American League and has been for the past three years.
Catcher Tyler Flowers was bummed that Floyd was tagged with a loss over basically one pitch. Earlier in the count, Martinez twice had failed to get solid contact on Floyds cutter, fouling them off. But the third time was a charm.
Victor had a good at-bat, Flowers said. Gavin threw at lot better than four runs allowed would indicate. Victor just took advantage of the mistake.
Chicago mounted a final rally off of a tightrope-walking Joaquin Benoit, loading the bases with two out as the plate began to jump around on the setup man with a fat contract, but Benoit punched out Flowers to end any semblance of a threat with nary a run scoring.
The loss slipped the Chisox back under .500 (73-74) and raised the staffs ERA vs. Detroit to a gaseous 6.14 on the season. The Tigers, whose magic number to eliminate the White Sox is three (four vs. Cleveland), have outscored Chicago 45-6 over the two teams last 31 innings played. The shutout was the 10th of the season for the White Sox, three of which now have come at the hands of Detroit.
Six Pack of Stats
Pressure Play (highest-leverage situation): With the bases loaded and two outs in the fourth inning, Gordon Beckham faced 3.75 LI in a one-run game against Verlanderand struck out to end the rare threat. Tigers 1, White Sox 0
Pressure Cooker (highest total leverage faced in the game): With 2.01 pLI, Beckham faced the highest overall pressure in the game, and faltered in the face of it, going 0-for 3 with a strikeout and a game-high six men left on base.
Wauoooo of the Day(greatest win probability added, single play): Martinez turned a nail-biter into a romp with a three-run homer in the fifth, following a Will Rhymes double and intentional walk to Cabrera. The clout was good for .178 WPA added to Detroits winning effort. Tigers 4, White Sox 0
Game MVP (greatest win probability added, game): Unshockingly, Verlanders seven-inning win, with six Ks against six hits and two walks landed him with a .375 WPA for the game, tops in the contest.
Chicagos Start: Floyd started out gangbusters before Martinezs clout, but unraveled quickly from there, lasting just 5 13 innings with four hits, four runs and four walks en route to a 43 game score.
Detroits Start: Verlander became the fifth hurler in the past 45 years to win five games in a season vs. the White Sox with his tidy but relatively unremarkable 69 game score in his seven-inning effort. The other four hurlers, according to stats maven Christopher Kamka, are Jim Kaat (1966), Paul Splittorff (1973), Jim Kern (1976) and Brian Anderson (2003).
Brett Ballantini is CSNChicago.com's White Sox Insider. Follow him @CSNChi_Beatnik on Twitter for up-to-the-minute Sox information.