Sox observations: O's beat Sox in prospect showcase

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A couple of youngsters dominated the spotlight in Friday’s series opener between the White Sox and Orioles. On the South Side, Lenyn Sosa made his MLB debut, the same day he was called up from Double-A Birmingham. On the visitors’ side, catcher phenom Adley Rutschman had the best game of his young career and played a pivotal role in Baltimore’s 4-0 victory.

LENYN SOSA MAKES MLB DEBUT

On Tuesday night, Lenyn Sosa was playing in Double-A Birmingham. Thursday afternoon, he was called up to the big leagues, but left off the lineup as he was still getting his bearings in the majors. That all changed halfway through the White Sox’ series opener against the Orioles, when Josh Harrison took a pitch off his right elbow. Harrison came out of the game, and Sosa was inserted at second base to start the sixth inning. Sosa’s first at-bat will be something he never forgets, even though he struck out on four pitches. His first play in the field went much better, however. In the eighth inning, Anthony Santander sent his broken bat flying through the air while the ball rolled to second. Sosa scooped it up without trouble, and tossed to first for his first assist. Then, in the ninth inning, Sosa managed another career-first by drawing a walk. We’ll see if Sosa draws his first start on Friday.

ADLEY RUTSCHMAN WINS BATTLE OF THE PROSPECTS

All of the South Side may have been laser focused on Sosa’s debut on Thursday, but it was the Orioles’ young phenom Adley Rutschman who showed why he is regarded as the top prospect in the game. Rutschman drove in three of the game’s four runs single-handedly with a couple of huge hits. First, he tattooed a ball 402 feet over the right field wall for a two-run homer. That blast had a 107 mph exit velocity. In his next at-bat, Rutschman smoked a double down the line to plate another run. After going 20 games without an RBI, Rutschman now has six since June 15. Thursday also marked the first three-RBI game of his career. The Orioles hope he has many more of those ahead of him.

BIG PLAYS AT THE PLATE

Both the White Sox and Orioles played aggressively on the basepaths on Thursday, and both teams paid for it. In the O’s case, and picture perfect relay from A.J. Pollock, to Tim Anderson, to Seby Zavala nailed Cedric Mullins in a bang-bang play. At the time it kept the score tied at 0-0. One inning later, it was the White Sox who had a runner thrown out at the plate. Continuing a trend of sending runners home from second base with two out in the inning, Joe McEwing waved home Gavin Sheets on a ball that was hit almost directly to Austin Hays in right field. Hays was able to get the ball to the plate with plenty of time for an easy out.

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