Don’t look now, but the Chicago White Sox are in a funk.
The Chicago White Sox slump continued Wednesday night, as the team lost to the Minnesota Twins for the second straight night 7-6, putting the Sox five games back in the AL Central division race.
Seven days ago, the Sox and Twins were tied atop the AL Central fighting for their playoff lives.
In that seven day span, the Sox have gone from atop the AL Central to five games behind the leading Twins, who look to have things rolling. Winners of six in a row and 9-1 in their last 10, the Twins now have a commanding divisional lead.
The Sox, on the other hand, have continued their slump going 2-8 in their last 10 while losing four games in a row. Last weekend’s series with the fading Detroit Tigers was humbling. This week’s series with the Twins was make or break for the White Sox and their season.
With just over 40 games to play on the season, the White Sox are in dire need of a boost and they need it fast.
White Sox starting pitching have been in disarray; along with the team’s bullpen that includes All-Star reserve Matt Thornton. Despite having two All-Star’s on the team, the Sox have gone (16-17) since the midway point of the season and have struggled to regain their early season composure.
The biggest problem with the team at this point is the discrepancy between offense and pitching. One night the pitching is on point, but the offense struggles to put up runs. Other nights the offensive is torrid, as the pitching struggles to put zeros up on the board.
Despite needing a spark, you can’t forget what this team is capable of accomplishing. At one point in the summer, the Sox reeled off 11 straight victories and went 18-9 in the month of June. July started off with a bang as well as the Sox pulled off another hot streak, winners of nine straight games.
As said before however, the team has lost its swagger since the All-Star break with a sub-.500 record heading into the most crucial part of the season.
The toughest part for the White Sox is that the schedule doesn’t get any easier, despite playing six games against Kansas City and Baltimore in the next seven days. With matchups against the division leading Yankees, Red Sox (twice), Twins, and Detroit who has proven to be a formidable opponent in the past weeks, the time is now for the White Sox to turn it around.
For the White Sox to get back into the thick of things, they may need to heed the advice of long-time broadcaster and television announcer Hawk Harrelson: Strap it down and play some baseball.