All-Stars Logan Webb and Garrett Crochet go head-to-head in a regular-season game for the first time in their careers Wednesday afternoon when the San Francisco Giants seek a sweep in their three-game home series against the Chicago White Sox.
The Giants held their position 3 1/2 games out of the final National League wild-card spot with a 4-1 victory over the White Sox on Tuesday. San Francisco won the series opener 5-3 on Monday.
The hosts will send one of baseball’s hottest pitchers — Webb (11-8, 3.17 ERA) — in pursuit of the club’s fourth straight win.
The 27-year-old has won each of his past four starts, allowing just two runs in 29 1/3 innings. His latest outing was a 6-0 home win over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday in which he pitched 7 2/3 innings.
Webb hasn’t beaten the White Sox in two previous career starts, going 0-2 with a 5.73 ERA.
Technically, Webb and Crochet (6-9, 3.61 ERA) did go head-to-head in the All-Star Game in July. Webb pitched the bottom of the third for the National League, yielding three runs, after which Crochet took over for the American League in the top of the fourth and tossed a scoreless inning.
Crochet has never faced the Giants. The 25-year-old left-hander is winless in his past 11 starts despite having allowed more than three earned runs just once over that stretch.
He was pulled after four innings in his most recent outing, on Friday against the host Houston Astros, despite having struck out nine and limited the Astros to just one run.
In fact, Crochet hasn’t gone longer than four innings in any of his past seven starts, which might open the door for newcomer Enyel De Los Santos to make his White Sox debut in the series finale.
The right-handed reliever joined the team in San Francisco after having been claimed off waivers from the New York Yankees. The 28-year-old, now with his sixth team, got into five games in his brief stint with the Yankees after having thrown 44 — all in relief — for the San Diego Padres to start the season.
“He has a good arm,” White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore said. “We were looking for any advantage we can get, any help we can get in the bullpen, just to make us stronger, give us more depth.”
While the White Sox were adding, the Giants were subtracting, placing catcher Patrick Bailey on the injured list due to a strained right oblique.
“We were a little bit cautious with this one,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said. “He’s one of those guys who’s hard to replace. But if you go out there even a game too early and re-injure that thing, it could be a long time.”
Both teams have had trouble producing runs in the series despite plenty of opportunities.
The White Sox amassed 11 hits and three walks in the series opener but managed just three runs after going 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position and stranding 10 baserunners.
The Giants then put 15 guys on base in the rematch via seven hits, seven walks and a hit batter, but they went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and totaled just four runs. They stranded nine.
The clubs have combined for just five extra-base hits — four doubles and a solo home run by Matt Chapman — so far in the series.
–Field Level Media