The way their record (56-92) is trending, this could wind up being the White Sox’ worst season in more than 50 years.
In another 10-2 loss to Minnesota on Friday, Royce Lewis’ bases-loaded demolition of a plate-splitting 3-1 fastball from Jesse Scholtens gave the Twins infielder his fourth grand slam of the season.
Previously, only former Sox mainstay Alexei Ramirez had hit four grand slams in a rookie season. Lewis has hit all four in his last 18 games, so the outright record could be in danger.
Those four runs in the second inning erased any early notions of a close game.
“I know I’m better than the guy who has been going out there,” Scholtens said. “It’s just very frustrating.”
A two-run shot by Elvis Andrus was all the scoring the Sox would muster.
Michael Kopech has yet to pitch a scoreless inning out of the bullpen in three tries and was seen slamming his glove in the dugout after allowing four runs in the ninth.
The outburst prompted a long postgame meeting in manager Pedro Grifol’s office.
“Those that know Michael — and I’ve gotten to know him very well the last three, four months because I’ve spoken to him a lot — he’s going to get this right,” Grifol said. “He’s extremely talented. We believe in him; we believe in the work he’s doing. We’ll be singing a different song, hopefully, next year at this time.”
Pantera problems
The spirit behind Luis Robert Jr.’s stated goal to play 150 games is noble, but his performance is hitting a bit of a wall.
An 0-for-4 night with two strikeouts has Robert at 7-for-40 (.146) with one walk and no home runs in September in 10 starts.
From Grifol’s description of Robert’s recent plate discipline, he’s more likely feeling the effects of pursuing 40 home runs than the grind of trying to play in 150 games.
“There’s individual goals that these guys have,” Grifol said. “Sometimes you get a little anxious as the season winds down to achieve some of those goals, and you start chasing.”
Crochet return?
Garrett Crochet is pitching well during his rehab assignment for left shoulder inflammation, striking out seven of the 10 hitters he has faced in three scoreless innings. But it’s still not a given that he returns to Chicago this year.
“There’s a possibility, but we don’t want to rush anything,” Grifol said. “We’ve got to take that slow and make sure that he’s healthy and he fits into what we’ve been talking about: We want you to go into an offseason without having to rehab anything.”
Crochet has stated a desire to start in the future, and the Sox certainly could use some candidates. But after undergoing Tommy John surgery last April and with his current injury, he has been limited to 10 major-league innings over the last two seasons.
Liam’s good works
Despite being sidelined with Tommy John surgery, Liam Hendriks had a busy Friday.
An estimated 1,800 fans attended a pregame tailgate that Hendriks hosted with television personality “DJ Pauly D,’’ raising funds for the Be The Match Foundation on World Lymphoma Awareness Day.
It was followed with Hendriks being recognized on the field before the game as the Sox’ nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, given out annually to the major-league player who best represents the game through charitable contributions and community service.
