CHICAGO -- Brooks Baldwin had three hits, four runs scored and two RBIs during his start at second base in a victory Tuesday night.
Here’s the one, minor problem: The switch-hitting utility player was starting for the Charlotte Knights, the White Sox Triple-A affiliate. Back in Chicago, the White Sox dropped a 12-2 decision during their Interleague series opener against the Cardinals at Rate Field, marking their sixth straight loss in a not particularly well-played game by the South Siders.
Baldwin and his nine home runs, .402 average and 1.303 OPS over 20 games for the Knights could be a nice boost on offense for a White Sox team that scored just 13 runs during their run of defeats. But Baldwin, 24, was optioned back to Charlotte following a weekend in the Majors prior to Tuesday’s contest, with Lenyn Sosa’s return from his injury rehab the corresponding move.
“That's part of the reason why he's in Triple-A, because we want him to play,” said White Sox manager Will Venable of Baldwin. “He's still a young player, and we just don't have that opportunity for him here. He's part of our vision for the future, and for him to get there and really develop, he needs to be in Triple-A playing."
Left-hander Matthew Liberatore started for the Cardinals (38-35), meaning the White Sox (23-50) starting lineup featured seven right-handed hitters, one switch-hitter in catcher Edgar Quero and left-handed hitter Mike Tauchman, who got the nod at designated hitter for his 500th career game after ranking third at DH in the first round of American League All-Star balloting released Monday.
Sosa played first base and made a throwing error in the first that starter Shane Smith (3-4) pitched around with no damage, giving Quero a chance to single home a run in the bottom of the inning for a 1-0 lead. During a five-run second inning for the Cardinals, Sosa couldn’t corral a decidedly errant throw from third baseman Miguel Vargas on Pedro Pagés’ bunt, and then with the bases loaded and no outs, Sosa fielded Masyn Winn’s slowly hit grounder and went to first for the out when he clearly had a play at the plate.
Putting the onus for this latest setback on Sosa’s defense is neither accurate nor fair, not when Tuesday marked his 13th career game at first, with 11 coming this season. But it illustrates how the White Sox continue to mix and match with more runway for prospects currently in the Minors on the horizon.
“Obviously giving them extra outs, two innings there, made Shane’s job tougher,” said Venable of his team’s 50th loss this season. “Yeah, just got to convert those balls into outs somehow. Shane has had that a couple of times and has had to work through it. Today we weren’t able to stop the bleeding.”
“Take the good pitches I made, take the bad pitches I made,” Smith said. “And try to make an adjustment this week."
Smith has been one of the great stories of the first half, exiting his 4 1/3 innings of work with a 2.85 ERA. He allowed more than three earned runs for the first time in 14 Major League starts, as the top pick in the ‘24 Rule 5 Draft yielded five with two strikeouts and three walks.
St. Louis didn’t have many squared-up hits against the rookie right-hander, using three run-scoring connections with exit velocities at 69 mph or below, according to Statcast, during that five-run rally. Smith hadn’t pitched since June 10 in Houston, which is another ongoing consideration for the White Sox as these young starters such as Smith, Davis Martin, Sean Burke and even Mike Vasil approach single-season innings highs.
“I think I can do a better job of it,” said Smith of handling the extended rest. “Instead of frontloading the work in the week and then leaving the rest of the days to kind of relax, if I have the seven days, making sure the back half of the week still has work involved and not as much recovery.
“You're still gonna do it, but making sure that balance is there. It wasn't really until Friday when I knew I was going to have the seven days, but even then you have the time to adjust. So just planning that way."
After playing good baseball on the last Texas road trip, despite a 1-5 record, the plan for the White Sox is to not let this present losing streak spiral out of control.
“Just come here tomorrow, turn the page,” Quero said. “Try to get out and win the ballgame."