Chicago Cubs: White Sox versus Cubs series preview

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BALTIMORE, MD – JULY 15: Addison Russell #27 and Willson Contreras #40 of the Chicago Cubs celebrate after scoring in the fifth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on July 15, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

The Chicago Cubs look to remain hot in the second half as they start a four-game set against the White Sox on Monday

After downing the Cardinals 5-3 on Sunday, the Chicago Cubs improved to 8-1 since the All-Star break. The outstanding play by the Cubs in the first nine games of the second half has propelled them into a tie for first place with the Brewers. At 51-46, the Cubs are five games above .500 for the first time this season.

While the Cubs are trending in the right direction, the White Sox seem to be heading in the opposite direction. After dropping Sunday’s contest to the Royals, the White Sox ran their losing streak to nine games and fell to 38-57 on the season. At 12 1/2 games back in the division and 11 games back in the Wild Card race, it would seem the White Sox are out of contention. Even though that is the case, the White Sox will no doubt play their best baseball against their crosstown rivals.

Let’s look a little deeper into how these two teams have fared this season, starting with a recent trade.

Cubs add much-needed pitching depth

Almost two weeks ago, the Cubs added Jose Quintana in a trade with the White Sox. Quintana, who is 28 years old, has three years of team control left, making him a highly valued asset.

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The Cubs’ need for a cost-controlled starting pitcher had never been higher. With Jake Arrieta and John Lackey likely leaving in free agency after the season, the Cubs needed a replacement. Not only was Quintana acquired to be a replacement, he was acquired to headline the rotation along with Jon Lester and help the Cubs reach the postseason.

A steep price to pay, but worth it

To get Quintana, the Cubs yielded their top two prospects in Dylan Cease and Eloy Jimenez. Also included in the deal were Matt Rose and Bryant Flete, but obviously Cease and Jimenez were the two big pieces acquired by the White Sox.

Less than a week after the trade, Quintana made his first start as a member of the Cubs. Quintana tossed seven shutout innings against the Orioles, allowing only three hits and striking out 12. While that start impressed many Cubs fans, Quintana has not had the best season. Before the trade, Quintana made 18 starts with the White Sox. In those starts, the lefty recorded a 4.49 ERA with 109 strikeouts and 40 walks in 104 1/3 innings pitched.

Despite Quintana’s rough numbers with his former team, the Cubs hope he can help bolster the starting rotation. Through two starts, Quintana is doing just that. Following his start on Sunday, Quintana has allowed just three earned runs in 13 innings, while striking out 19 and walking just two batters.

Since the break, the rotation has been solid

In nine starts since the All-Star break, the Cubs’ starting staff has logged 56 innings, while allowing 15 earned runs. That means the rotation has recorded a 2.41 ERA in those games, while striking out 52 and walking 11.

That solid play by the rotation has allowed the Cubs to out-score opponents 56-33 since the break.

While the addition of Jose Quintana has no doubt provided the rotation with a boost, the numbers still look ugly. Jon Lester, who is leading the Cubs in ERA, owns a 3.95 mark which is more than a run and a half higher than his ERA last season. Despite his elevated ERA, Lester has pitched masterfully in his last two starts. In a combined 15 innings, Lester has allowed three earned runs, six hits and has only issued one walk while striking out 16.

In addition to Lester’s recent success, Jake Arrieta seems to have found a groove. Over his last 12 2/3 innings pitched, Arrieta has yielded just four runs (three earned) on nine hits. The right-hander has also walked three batters and struck out nine in the same amount of innings. With that success, Arrieta has lowered his season ERA from 4.35 to 4.11, while recording a 2.13 ERA in the month of July.

The Cubs’ rotation is about to receive another boost

With Kyle Hendricks set to make his return to the rotation on Monday, the Cubs will get another reinforcement for their rotation.

Hendricks was placed on the DL in early June with tendinitis in his right hand. What was thought to be a minor injury has resulted in an almost two month DL stint for the 27-year-old.

The young right-hander had his coming out party in 2016, posting a 2.13 ERA with 170 strikeouts and 44 walks in 190 innings pitched. While he led the majors in ERA, Hendricks finished third in the NL Cy young voting behind Max Scherzer and Jon Lester.

After having a great 2016 campaign, Hendricks got off to a rough start in 2017. In 11 starts before his injury, Hendricks posted a 4.09 ERA in 61 2/3 innings pitched.

Even though Hendricks got off to a slow start, the Cubs hope he can turn it around now that he is healthy. Cubs fans will not have to wait long to see Hendricks as the youngster is slated to start the first game of the series.

Willson Contreras has stepped up of late

The Cubs’ recent play has been aided by the performance of catcher Willson Contreras. In the month of July, Contreras is hitting .339 with six home runs and 14 RBI. The 25-year-old has come into his own this season, slashing .269/.334/.491 with 15 home runs and 52 in 87 games this season.

Contreras played in 76 games last season, hitting 12 home runs and driving in 35. Even though it’s still July, Contreras has already eclipsed both those numbers and could be a candidate to hit 25 home runs this season.

The young back-stop is finding success this season even though his line drive percentage is down from a year ago. According to Fangraphs, Contreras is hitting 1.6% less line drives and 2.8% more fly balls this season. In addition to hitting more fly balls, Contreras is also hitting the ball harder. Fangraphs tell us the 25-year-old is making hard contact 1.7% more this season compared to last. These numbers help to explain Contreras’ increased home run total.

Other key guys have stepped up as well

In addition to Contreras, Javier Baez has been red-hot of late. Over his last 19 at-bats, Baez is hitting .421 with two home runs and four RBI. On the season, the 24-year-old Baez is enjoying a .271/.308/.476 slash line with 12 home runs and 39 RBI. While many would like to see Baez’s OBP increase, he has recorded 73 hits in 86 games, including 17 doubles.

Kris Bryant is also doing his part to help the Cubs this season. The 25-year-old third baseman is slashing .280/.403/.530. In addition to that, Bryant has slugged 19 home runs and driven in 42. While Bryant is enjoying a productive season, he has caught fire in the month of July. In 59 at-bats, Bryant is hitting .356 with three home runs and 10 RBI.

As the Cubs look to stay hot in the second half, it will be important for these players and their teammates to keep producing at the plate.

The White Sox’s offense has been bad

As touched on above, the White Sox are free-falling. Losers of their last nine, the White Sox are 19 games under .500. The lackluster effort from the offense and pitching staff has contributed to their horrid record.

The White Sox offense currently ranks 23rd in runs scored, 21st in OBP and 21st in slugging percentage.

While the White Sox may not stack up well offensively against other teams, they have seen productive from some of their stars. In 94 games, Jose Abreu is slashing .296/.350/.509 with 16 home runs and 60 RBI. Abreu leads the White Sox in RBI and hits while Avisail Garcia leads the team with a .311 batting average and .356 OBP.

Tim Anderson, who has played in 84 games for the White Sox, is hitting just .243 on the season. In addition to that, Anderson owns a .266 OBP and has struck out 93 times in 334 at-bats.

Despite having struggled for much of the season, in the last five games the White Sox offense has been solid. Led by Melky Cabrera, the White Sox have slashed .251/.293/.384. In their last five games, they have hit five home runs and recorded 18 RBI, while racking up 10 doubles.

While this season seems to be lost, it would no doubt give White Sox fans hope going into next season if the offense performed well to close out the season.

KANSAS CITY, MO – JULY 22: Mike Pelfrey /

The White Sox’s pitching has been just as bad as the offense

For a team that has struggled offensively, the last thing they need is a bad pitching staff. For the White Sox, nothing has gone right on the pitching side of the ball.

Currently, the White Sox rank 19th in the majors with a 4.60 team ERA. In addition to that, their 1.41 WHIP rank the White Sox 24th in the league.

This season, the White Sox have had seven pitchers make more than one start (exlcuding Jose Quintana). Of those pitchers, only one of them has an ERA under 4.00. To make matters worse, Derek Holland, who leads the team with five wins, has a -0.6 WAR and a 5.12 ERA.

With the team struggling, the White Sox’s front office decided to trade Tommy Kahnle, David Robertson and Todd Frazier to the Yankees. While Frazier was hitting just .207 at the time of the trade, Kahnle and Robertson were the White Sox two best bullpen arms.

Prior to the trade, Kahnle appeared in 37 games for the White Sox, posting a 2.50 ERA. Robertson, who appeared in 31 games, was equally as good. In 33 1/3 innings pitched, Robertson recorded a 2.70 ERA with 47 strikeouts.

Paired with the Jose Quintana trade, the trade of their two best relievers signals the White Sox are in sell mode as the trade deadline approaches.

Cubs’ rotation looks to stay hot, White Sox’s staff looks for momentum

Monday – Kyle Hendricks (4-3, 4.09 ERA) and Miguel Gonzalez (4-9, 4.89 ERA).

After being on the shelf for nearly two months, Kyle Hendricks will make his return. Hendricks had struggled before being placed on the DL. In 11 starts, Hendricks posted a 104 ERA+ and 2.43 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Gonzalez is in the midst of his second season with the White Sox. After posting solid numbers last season, Gonzalez has struggled this season. His strikeout-to-walk ratio sits at 1.61, while his WHIP is 1.51.

Tuesday – John Lackey (6-9, 5.04 ERA) and Carlos Rodon (1-3, 5.75 ERA).

Lackey seems to have found a groove of late, posting a 3.27 ERA in the month of July. Despite that solid play, Lackey’s ERA is still more than a run and a half higher than last season. Rodon has made four starts for the White Sox this season, striking out 20 batters in 20 1/3 innings pitched. In addition to that, Rodon has logged a .234 batting average against, while posting a 1.62 WHIP.

Series swings to the South Side

Wednesday – Jake Arrieta (9-7, 4.11 ERA) and James Shields (2-2, 5.79 ERA).

After starting the season off strong, James Shields has fallen on hard times. In the month of July, the right-hander has a 9.60 ERA. In his last start, Shields issued 10 hits and six earned runs in 4 1/3 innings. Arrieta has also had a rough season in 2017. While it has not been as bad as Shields’ season, Arrieta has seen his home runs per nine innings almost double from last season. Despite that, Arrieta’s strikeout-to-walk ratio is slightly higher than last season.

Thursday – Jon Lester (7-6, 3.95 ERA) and Mike Pelfrey (3-7, 4.46 ERA).

Next: Chicago Cubs move into first place with 5-3 win over Cardinals

The 33-year-old Pelfrey is looking to build off his last start in which he allowed one earned run over five innings, while striking out four and walking six. In 78 2/3 innings pitched this season, Pelfrey has struck out 52 batters and walked 39. After giving up 10 runs (four earned) and only recording two outs on July 9, Lester has allowed just three runs in his last 15 innings. Despite this, the lefty still owns a lofty 1.24 WHIP.

Start times

Monday and Tuesday’s games on the North Side will start at 1:20 p.m. CT, while Wednesday and Thursday’s games at Guaranteed Rate Field will start at 7:00 p.m. and 7:10 p.m. CT respectively.

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