Despaigne shelled again in 'unacceptable' outing
Anderson's offensive outburst all for naught; Marshall 'a little bit off'
ARLINGTON ¨C Some good things happened for the White Sox during a 6-5 loss to the Rangers Saturday night at Globe Life Park, dropping them to 36-38 and preventing the South Siders from getting to .500.
Tim Anderson homered, doubled and singled and matched a career high with four RBIs. Josh Osich, after losing a pregame cow milking contest to the Rangers¡¯ Shawn Kelley, threw 2 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. And the White Sox defense threw out two Rangers at home, one at third and doubled another off first.
And now for the less-than-perfect news.
Odrisamer Despaigne made his third start for the White Sox, and after a second straight rough outing, it very well could be his last trip to the mound for the organization. This start was especially tough with the White Sox grabbing a 4-0 lead with two outs in the first inning off Texas starter Lance Lynn.
By the time a 39-minute first inning had come to a close, the Rangers had fought back within 4-3 and, at the very least, taken momentum from the visitors.
¡°It hurts, but you do what you can,¡± White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. ¡°He¡¯s our guy there. I think that all things being equal, you try to work through it.¡±
¡°I just gave up a four-run lead and that¡¯s unacceptable,¡± said Despaigne through interpreter Billy Russo. ¡°I felt good at the beginning, but I didn¡¯t have the best sequence. I didn¡¯t mix up my pitches. I am falling behind in the count constantly. That¡¯s something at this level you can¡¯t do as a pitcher, because you know the hitters are going to take advantage.¡±
Nomar Mazara launched a 430-foot home run to right in the first -- his first of two off of Despaigne -- and Logan Forsythe doubled home another in the opening frame. Despaigne was helped out of the jam when Asdrubal Cabrera was nailed at home on a perfect relay throw from right fielder Charlie Tilson to second baseman Yolmer Sánchez to catcher Zack Collins.
Tilson and Sanchez also threw out Willie Calhoun trying to stretch a double into a triple with one out in the third, and Sanchez later doubled off Forsythe at first on Jeff Mathis¡¯ line drive in the fourth. When the Rangers scored two in the sixth to take the lead, Mathis was thrown out at home on Leury Garcia¡¯s Major League leading ninth outfield assist.
Those two runs were scored off reliever Evan Marshall, who entered with a 5-4 lead and a 0.00 ERA over 18 games and 17 1/3 innings. The Rangers put up the first earned runs against the right-hander this season.
¡°You would like to say it¡¯s just one of those days, but honestly, it¡¯s just a command thing,¡± Marshall said. ¡°I¡¯ve been pretty good with the ball, but four pitch walk, 3-0 to the next guy. That¡¯s seven straight. I haven¡¯t done that in a long time.
¡°Just a little bit off. It¡¯s one of those things where a couple of close pitches go another way, and I¡¯m in a different count and things go differently. You tip your cap. They were on me tonight. It¡¯s a good streak for me to start this year. Like to start a new one tomorrow.¡±
Despaigne has not found nearly the same level of success as Marshall, albeit in a much more limited situation. He has a 9.45 ERA over three starts, with 24 hits and seven walks allowed in 13 1/3 innings.
Dylan Cease, the No. 18 prospect overall according to MLB Pipeline, could move from Triple-A Charlotte to the White Sox rotation as soon as the first week of July. But even without Cease and Carlos Rodon undergoing season-ending Tommy John surgery, as well as Dylan Covey and Manny Banuelos dealing with injures, the White Sox could be looking for another starting option.
¡°As far as we are concerned, Despaigne is here until he¡¯s not,¡± Renteria said. ¡°He will continue to get his opportunities until we all find either a different option, or we decide we need an option. Right now, we¡¯ll still send him out here and try to allow him to do his job.¡±