White Sox Spoil McAllister’s Return, Defeat Indians 6-2

Despite a solid return to the Tribe’s rotation from Zach McAllister, the Indians dropped a 6-2 decision to the White Sox on Saturday, falling to 1-1 since LeBron James announced he was coming back to the Cavaliers (if you care about stuff like that). Scott Carroll pitched 5 shutout innings for the White Sox and only allowed 2 hits and walk, while striking out 3. Cuban sensation Jose Abreu hit his league-leading 29th home run (a 2-run bomb in the 4th inning), and the White Sox never looked back. Adam Dunn added an RBI single in the 6th, while Chicago scored 3 more runs in the 9th inning from a 2-run double by Gordon Beckham and a sacrifice fly by Leury Garcia.

For the Indians, Jason Kipnis drew a bases-loaded walk in the 7th, and All-Star Michael Brantley hit his 15th home run of the season, a solo shot in the 8th.

The Positives

McAllister looked good in his return to the rotation, allowing 3 earned runs and 4 hits in 7 innings. He walked and struck out 2, while throwing 63 of his 92 pitches for strikes. He pitched well and gave the Indians a chance to win, while also helping the bullpen get some needed rest. In addition to the aforementioned walk, Kipnis added another hit as well. He looks to be hitting his stride at the plate, and he’s helped fill the void of Michael Bourn in the leadoff role for Terry Francona. Meanwhile, Brantley has continued to strengthen his All-Star resume. The Indians’ defense was reliable, and didn’t make any errors.

The Negatives

The Indians only had 6 hits, which were all singles except Brantley’s home run. Asdrubal Cabrera left a small village on the bases (5 men, to be exact), and struck out to end the inning with the bases loaded in the 7th. The Indians continue to struggle with runners in scoring position, and went 1-6 in such scenarios on Saturday. The bullpen pitched well overall, though Austin Adams allowed 3 hits and 3 earned runs while retiring just one batter. (Despite a rough welcome to the majors, I still have a lot of faith in Adams, and there’s no reason for Indians fans to be worried.) After climbing back to .500 on Friday, the Indians fell to 46-47 and currently sit 8 games behind the division-leading Tigers.

Check it Out

-McAllister had the following to say about his performance on Saturday:

"I was extremely happy with it. It’s kind of what I had in mind and was hoping I was able to accomplish. Obviously, it would’ve been a lot better if we were able to get the ‘W.’ We didn’t today, but again, it’s a good step in the right direction."

-While hitting .295/.363/.483 in victories this season, the Indians are hitting just .215/.281/.309 during losses.

-With a successful challenge in the 7th inning (that helped lead to the Indians loading the bases and scoring a run), Terry Francona is now 11-21 in challenges this season.

-Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer threw out the first pitch prior to Saturday’s game.

–Shawn Morimando pitched 6 1/3 innings for Single-A Carolina, allowing just a single run and striking out 5. Carolina defeated Winston-Salem, 2-1.

–Anthony Gallas hit another homer and had 3 RBI for Double-A Akron in a 5-1 win over Trenton, while Cody Anderson pitched 6 shutout innings. Gallas is currently hitting “just” .351 with the RubberDucks.

–Clint Frazier hit a home run and a triple in a 7-6 win for Single-A Lake County. He’s now hitting .268 for the Captains, and is tearing the cover off of the ball after struggling at the beginning of the season.

-After being designated for assignment a few days ago by the Indians, reliever Mark Lowe has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus.