HOUSTON — So much for the meaning of spring training.
Dylan Cease was back to his Cy Young-caliber stuff in the White Sox’ 3-2 victory Thursday.
After putting up a 7.31 ERA in Arizona, Cease stymied the World Series champion Astros with his most dominant performance since his near-no hitter against the Twins last September, retiring 19 consecutive batters after Jeremy Pena’s leadoff single. Cease struck out 10 and walked none before exiting with one out in the seventh inning of a scoreless game with his pitch count at 86.
After the Sox failed to cash in on two good scoring opportunities, catcher Yasmani Grandal hit a tying homer in the eighth against Rafael Montero, and first baseman Andrew Vaughn roped a two-run double into the left-center-field gap against Astros closer Ryan Pressly in the ninth to break a 1-1 tie as the Sox won in Pedro Grifol’s managerial debut.
It was the Sox’ first Opening Day win in five years, and it halted the Astros’ winning streak of 10 openers in a row.
Grifol got a shaving-cream job from his players, who rolled him into the shower on a laundry cart, and a cigar from general manager Rick Hahn.
“It was fun,” Grifol said. “Cease was really unbelievable.”
“This and my no-hitter game are probably my 1-2,” Cease said. “That was about as sharp as I’ve ever been.”
Touching 98 mph after usually topping out at 95 in Cactus League games, Cease threw his fastball for strikes and his slider and curve, too. He worked ahead in the count.
After striking out Alex Bregman for his 10th punch-out to tie Jack McDowell’s Sox Opening Day record in 1991, Cease hit Yordan Alvarez with a slider in the dirt, then gave up a single to left to former Sox star Jose Abreu.
With lefty Michael Tucker coming up, Grifol went to lefty Aaron Bummer, who walked Tucker to load the bases. After striking out Yainer Diaz, Bummer bounced his first pitch to Jake Meyers off Grandal’s mitt, allowing Alvarez to score the go-ahead run.
Grandal tied it 1-1 with a 401-foot home run to right-center. That came two batters after Yoan Moncada tried stretching a two-out error by Abreu at first base into three bases but was out for the first out of the inning. It was the kind of bad baserunning that plagued the Sox at times during their disappointing 81-81 season in 2022, but they survived it.
“The way we won it,” Cease said. “We had so many opportunities and just kept fighting. Finally we did it at the end. It couldn’t be a better start to the season.”
Cease was charged with one run and two hits in 6„ innings. Of his 86 pitches, 62 were strikes.
Astros starter Framber Valdez, who finished fifth in American League Cy Young voting last season — Cease was second — pitched five scoreless innings. Valdez escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the fifth. The Sox filled the bases with one out in the seventh against Hector Neris, but Vaughn and Eloy Jimenez struck out.
“We were getting guys on and not getting them in,” Vaughn said. “In that last at-bat, I said, ‘Hey, I’ve got to get it done.’ ’’
Kendall Graveman pitched a scoreless eighth, and Reynaldo Lopez, touching 100 mph, pitched the ninth for his first career save but not before giving up a 440-foot homer to Alvarez to cut the Sox’ lead to 3-2.
“I was so nervous,” said Lopez, who at first thought it was the eighth inning. “I tried to calm down, and I think next time I’ll be better.’’
Lopez got Abreu on a bouncer to third on a 10-pitch at-bat, and, after walking Tucker, struck out Diaz to end the game.
But it all started with Cease.
“That’s so impressive, watching him pitch,” Vaughn said. “It’s unbelievable what he can do with the baseball.”
