MLB Player News

It appears to be just a routine night off for the 27-year-old infielder. David Hamilton will start in his place and will bat ninth for the Brewers against Marlins’ right-hander Janson Junk.

The 28-year-old southpaw has struggled in his time with the White Sox this season, posting a 5.93 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and a 32/8 K/BB ratio across 27 1/3 innings in his 25 appearances. He should still help to stabilize the middle of the Pirates’ bullpen given their recent struggles. The Pirates will have to make a corresponding move on Saturday before he’s added to the active roster.

As Jeff Passan of ESPN reported earlier, the expectation is that Gonzalez will join the Pirates immediately and function as their regular shortstop while Konnor Griffin is sidelined. The 24-year-old held his own in his debut with the White Sox, hitting .244/.323/.360 with a pair of homers and 17 RBI in 97 plate appearances.

Burger delivered the decisive blow in this game with a three-run home run in the seventh inning that stretched the Rangers’ lead out to four runs. He chipped in an RBI groundout in the first as well and has quietly been a solid run producer in the first half with 16 home runs and 58 RBI with a .244 batting average.

The sinker-balling Quantrill was blessed by this right-handed heavy Astros’ lineup. He threw that pitch nearly 60% of the time to the seven righties and of the 11 times they put it in play, no one reached safely. That right there is a sinker-baller’s dream. The one blemish on his ledger was a solo home run from Yordan Alvarez, and there’s not much any pitcher can do about that. Still, Quantrill has had a nice return to the rotation so far with a 2.12 ERA across four starts spanning 17 innings.

Gonzalez was bumped off the White Sox’ big league roster on Friday with the return of Munetaka Murakami after slashing .244/.323/.360 with two homers and 17 RBI in 97 plate appearances. Passan notes that the Pirates plan to play Gonzalez at shortstop while Konnor Griffin is shelved. Eisert also adds a veteran arm to a bullpen that is in desperate need of reinforcements.

This was a special home run for Alvarez. First off, because he’s the first player in the American League to reach 30 on the season. Also, it was the 200th of his career. Lastly, he absolutely clobbered it. At 455 feet it was the furthest home run he’s hit this season and he took a moment to stare and admire it. His pursuit of a triple crown wages on with 30 home runs, 68 RBI, and a .312 batting average with two games left before the All-Star break.

Brown didn’t look right this entire start. He set the tone poorly by walking Joc Pederson to start the game which led to a two-run Rangers rally in the first. From there, his command was a complete mess. He never found the feel for either his knuckle-curve or slider and really had to grit his teeth to fight out of some jams. Still, he turned in a quality start and gave his team a chance to win the game.

Peters was at the heart of this White Sox blowout win over the Athletics. First, he contributed a run-scoring single during their four-run outburst against Aaron Civale. Then, he helped break it open with a two-run home run as they poured it on in the seventh inning. The White Sox managed to bat around in that inning and Peters came to the plate next needing a triple to complete the cycle. He yanked a ball down the first base line, got on his horse, and slid into third safely as the crowd roared. That was the first cycle by a White Sox player since José Abreu – yes, really – in 2017. This is a fantastic exclamation point on a stellar first half for Peters’ with a .303/.357/.484 slash-line to go along with six home runs and five stolen bases.

Burke was dominant here from the get-go. He was perfect through the first 13 batters and when Jacob Wilson finally singled in the fifth, he was immediately erased by a double play. His fastball was the star of the show, forcing 10 of his 16 total swings-and-misses and sitting at 96 mph, more than a full tick above its season average. That pitch was so lethal that Burke used it more so as his put-away pitch while mixing his slider, knuckle-curve, and sinker more so early in counts. He had it all going on and ended the first half on a heater not giving up more than two runs in any of his last five starts. Altogether, he’ll head into the All-Star break with a stellar 3.41 ERA, 115 strikeouts, and 33 walks through 105 2/3 innings.

At the time, it seemed like Soderstrom had hit a meaningful home run. He cut the White Sox’s lead to 4-1 in the top of the seventh and there was a whiff of momentum in the air. Then, the White Sox responded with an eight-run bottom of that inning and the rout was on. Alas, that was Soderstrom’s 14th home run in a first half where he had to battle a couple of injuries.