The Chicago White Sox, after edging the host Houston Astros 5-4 on Friday to open a three-game weekend set, will look to seal their first series win since June when the teams face off on Saturday.
The Friday result ended the Astros’ eight-game winning streak.
White Sox ace Garrett Crochet dominated despite working with a restrictive pitch count. He threw just 55 pitches while striking out nine batters over four innings of one-run ball.
“We’re trying to keep him on a set limit and protect him as much as we can, especially moving forward,” White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore said of Crochet, whose 124 2/3 innings this season are more than double his previous major league high.
Chris Flexen (2-11, 5.34 ERA) is scheduled to start for the White Sox on Saturday. The right-hander is 0-8 with a 5.79 ERA and an .869 opponents’ OPS over his last 17 starts, with the White Sox losing each game.
Flexen earned his last victory on May 8 against the Tampa Bay Rays, when he allowed one run on three hits and one walk with eight strikeouts over six innings in a 4-1 road win.
Flexen is 1-6 with a 4.37 ERA over 10 career starts against the Astros. In his only appearance against Houston this year, Flexen did not factor into the decision of a 5-3 home loss on June 20 after allowing one run on five hits and three walks with six strikeouts over six innings.
Right-hander Hunter Brown (10-7, 3.96 ERA) has the starting assignment for the Astros. He matched his season high of nine strikeouts against the Boston Red Sox on Sunday while allowing two runs on five hits and two walks over 5 1/3 innings in a 10-2 victory. It marked only the second time in 15 starts that Brown failed to log at least six innings. He was 9-3 with a 2.40 ERA during that stretch.
Brown is 2-0 with a 3.09 ERA in two career starts against the White Sox. He earned the victory on June 19 after allowing one run on seven hits with six strikeouts and no walks over six innings in a 4-1 win over the White Sox.
The Astros played their 60th consecutive game without All-Star right fielder Kyle Tucker (right shin contusion) on Friday. Houston manager Joe Espada acknowledged the need for at least one member from the rotating cast of outfielders to provide some measure of offensive production.
Jake Meyers slugged a two-run home run in the sixth inning that pulled the Astros to within one run, but he finished 1-for-4 and struck out twice.
Chas McCormick went 0-for-2 and grounded out to third base on the first pitch of his third plate appearance in the sixth, stranding a pair of teammates in scoring position. He is 2-for-27 (.074) over his past 13 games and is batting .196 on the season.
“We need to get him going,” Espada said of McCormick. “He’s trying to make some changes to his swing, trying to work on his approach. He needs to build his confidence because he’s getting good pitches to hit. He just hasn’t been able to get that big hit to get himself going.”
–Field Level Media