Cannon's third straight quality start derailed by one costly pitch

KANSAS CITY -- Behind a solid rotation of young arms, the White Sox are closing the gap between wins and losses. A few singular moments have determined the outcomes in each of the first three games of this series against the Royals, and Wednesday night was no different.

For Jonathan Cannon -- who delivered his third straight quality start with six innings of two-run ball -- it was one pitch.

Cannon allowed a two-run homer to Bobby Witt Jr. on a slider up-and-inside in the fifth inning, and that was the difference in Chicago’s 2-1 loss. A late ninth-inning rally fell short to secure the South Siders’ club-record 10th straight loss at Kauffman Stadium.

It was another frustrating night for the White Sox, who pitched well enough to win on Monday before a series of unlikely errors led to a defeat on Tuesday. It was much of the same story on Wednesday, with Chicago unable to make one or two plays to swing the outcome.

“We’re right there, we just got to keep going,” manager Will Venable said. “These guys are playing well. We have to continue to fight and battle and get that one more hit, that one more pitch, that one more defensive play, whatever it might be, but we’re right there. These guys never stop fighting, so proud of our effort, but got to find a way to win some of these games.”

The biggest determining factor in the White Sox third straight loss was Cannon’s pitch to Witt in the fifth inning. After getting the 2024 American League MVP runner-up to pop up softly to second base in the third inning with a runner in scoring position, Cannon was in the same spot two frames later.

This time, in a 1-0 count, Witt turned on a slider -- sending it a Statcast-projected 392 feet for the Royals’ runs.

“In the previous two at-bats, we were able to get up-and-in, [but in the] third at-bat, he made an adjustment and put a good swing on it,” Cannon said.

“Tough one to Witt. Good pitch, good spot, just [a] good player [who] put a good swing on it.”

Otherwise, Cannon worked through six innings without much trouble. White Sox starters have allowed two earned runs or fewer in all three games of this series after strong outings by Shane Smith and Sean Burke in the first two. Instead, the White Sox are 0-3 in Kansas City despite giving up only eight earned runs in three of the four games in the set that wraps on Thursday afternoon.

“I think from a game-planning perspective, I really liked how [Smith and Burke] attacked the hitters, and I was trying to do more of the same tonight, especially utilizing the fastball,” Cannon said. “I thought me and [catcher Matt] Thaiss were able to do a good job of that. Obviously, they did a great job of keeping guys off-balance as well.”

The White Sox have scored just four runs in three games against a Royals staff which ranks near the top in MLB in ERA. Miguel Vargas, Luis Robert Jr. and Thaiss all reached to begin the ninth to scratch a run off closer Carlos Estevéz, but the rally fizzled despite the potential tying run reaching second with none out.

“We were aggressive. Another closer that we battled with, we’ve done a great job at the end of games,” Venable said. “Just got to find a way to score early, but again, just a really good job by our guys continuing to battle.”

The White Sox weren’t able to make enough plays to win the game, but they made more than enough to stay in it. Cannon and Vargas teamed up to make a tough play to get Drew Waters out at first on a tricky swinging bunt up the first-base line to save a run in the fourth. And that’s in addition to Vargas having the awareness to complete the 3-1 putout despite being struck by a broken bat at his feet, which knocked him to the ground and left a hole in his sock.

“He had two outstanding plays,” Cannon said. “ ... for him to get smoked with a barrel, and get up and still make the play, those were two huge plays in the game.”

However, the White Sox dropped to 2-15 in games decided by two runs or fewer. The starting pitching has given the club its chances, and now the next step is to take advantage of it.