Needless to say, the pitching hasn\u2019t been the problem for the White Sox as of late. The staff has a 1.27 ERA and sub-one WHIP over the last nine games \u2026 during which time the ineptitude of the offense has led them to just a 3-6 record.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The sluggishness is to be expected. We\u2019ve seen the lineups. People seem to be reacting accordingly \u2014 perhaps last year\u2019s Montgomery and Teel-aided second-half boost actually shocked some sanity into the White Sox fan base, because the freak-outs have been fewer and farther between than I might have anticipated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
No, I don\u2019t think anybody really thinks that underperformance from Tristan Peters, Reese McGuire or Derek Hill has any more of a bearing on the team\u2019s future than all of those horrific Joshua Palacios and Nick Maton at-bats did last year. On this day in particular, the recent state of the team feels particularly unbothersome, because this year\u2019s wave of promotions is already underway. Welcome to the big leagues, Noah Schultz!<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The No. 26 overall pick out of Oswego East high school on the outer fringes of the Chicagoland area, Schultz will be the second 2022 Sox draftee to make his debut this month, following Tyler Schweitzer. Schultz also will become the sixth player from the 2022 draft class to make his debut for the Sox, joining Schweitzer, Tim Elko, Brooks Baldwin, and today\u2019s bulk pitcher, Jonathan Cannon. Second-rounder Peyton Pallette also recently made his debut for Cleveland, after being plucked away on the verge of the majors by the Guardians in December\u2019s Rule 5 draft.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n If that seems like an impressive success rate, it really isn\u2019t. But in terms of players actually playing for the Sox, it\u2019s already close to their most successful draft of the last 15 years. The jury is still out on the current player development operation, but it\u2019s clearly a step up from the Flintstones who were running the place for the entirety of the 2010s.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Anyhow, while we wait for Schultz to do his thing tomorrow, here\u2019s the lineup they\u2019ll be running out behind Cannon today, who himself will be reserved for an inning or two while Grant Taylor handles opening duties for the fourth time in 10 days. (Cannon makes his first appearance on a major league mound this season after opening the year in Charlotte.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n I personally applaud the fact that manager Will Venable is at least willing to go outside the box and change things up a bit, but there\u2019s also a part of me that wonders if the lack of consistency for the hitters themselves winds up being a long-term negative in the name of eking out a few extra points of win probability. Baseball is a game of habit and routine, and while it might seem immaterial to us civilians where one hits in the lineup \u2014 hitting is hitting, right? \u2014 it can have a material impact on how one approaches a game or an at-bat, and naturally, it considerably changes the types of situations a hitter is likely to find themselves in when they step up to bat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n I\u2019m happy they\u2019ve finally moved out of the stone age with certain conventions \u2014 can you imagine Tony La Russa hitting Miguel Vargas in the leadoff spot? \u2014 but I remain concerned that Venable is constantly switching things up simply for the sake of trying something new, to the detriment of long-term consistency and development.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Anyhow, now that I\u2019m done prattling on, here\u2019s the lineup that Matt Quatraro is rolling with against Cannon. The 25-year-old has had some measure of success against the Royals in the past, holding them to an even 3.00 ERA across four starts and 24 innings. Let\u2019s hope today continues that trend, because having given up eight runs in 8 2\/3 innings for the Knights this year, he could use the jolt.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n