White Sox Can’t Bring Down the House

Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Rookie Left-Hander Holds His Own vs. ERA Leader Sale

In his second consecutive outing, TJ House allowed just one run over seven innings, outlasting White Sox ace Chris Sale.  Though he didn’t earn the win, his only blemish was a solo home run by Alexei Ramirez.  He struck out seven and didn’t walk a batter, coming away with perhaps his best performance as a major-leaguer.

The Indians’ only run in the first nine innings came via an RBI single by Carlos Santana to drive home Tyler Holt.  They took the tie game into the bottom of the tenth after an impressive escape act by C.C. Lee in the top half of the inning.  Yan Gomes led off with a triple and eventually came home to score on pinch-hitter David Murphy‘s first plate appearance with the club in over a month.

The Positives

TJ House, again.  His last two starts have been very good, to say the least.  14 innings, 12 strikeouts, one walk and two earned runs.  He puts men on base, but he’s just so damn good at getting ground ball outs.  C.C. Lee did a fine job to recover from walking the first batter he faced.  Tyler Holt came away with a pair of hits and had some great at-bats against a really tough pitcher.  Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen were solid for the Tribe.  Michael Brantley extended his hitting streak to 9 games.

The Negatives

Jose Ramirez went 0-for-3 and is now hitless in his last 9 plate appearances.  Ryan Raburn pulled a ridiculous slapstick act in the outfield once again, and should be embarrassed to have ever put on a baseball uniform this year.  And Jason Kipnis looked sluggish and outmatched at the plate this year.  I don’t know what’s wrong with him, but I miss the old Kipnis and am starting to wonder if we’ll ever see him again.

Check It Out
-The win was Cleveland’s 11th walk-off victory this year, tied for the most in baseball.
-The Indians acquired J.B. Shuck from the Angels for cash before the game.
-The pinch-hit appearance by Kipnis was his first of the year.