Lillibridge, Dunn struggle in loss to Yankees
There has been a lot of blame to go around during this start-and-stop season for the White Sox.
Brent Lillibridge was the obvious candidate after Monday night's 3-2 loss to the New York Yankees at U.S. Cellular Field — on two fronts.
First, Lillibridge mimicked frequent blame champion Alex Rios right off the bat with a defensive gaffe.
After Brent Gardner singled against Jake Peavy to lead off the game, Curtis Granderson doubled to right field, where Lillibridge got to the ball in good shape. But Lillibridge missed the cutoff throw, allowing Gardner to come all away around to score.
“We've been missing that a lot,” manager Ozzie Guillen after the Sox dropped their third straight. “I think the basics of the game, we're not too good about it.”
Speaking of basics, Lillibridge had a bad night at the plate as well.
Shaking off an early 3-0 deficit and gamely battling Yankees ace CC Sabathia, the White Sox rallied to make it 3-2 on Alexei Ramirez's home run in the fourth inning.
In the fifth, A.J. Pierzynski and Gordon Beckham led off with consecutive singles, but Lillibridge popped out on his sacrifice-bunt attempt. The failure to execute really hurt when Brent Morel hit a hard liner that was turned into an inning-ending double play.
“I think the bunt was big for the game,” Guillen said. “I don't know what could have happened there, but I think that was huge.”
Lillibridge deserves the goat horns, no doubt, but it was runaway season blame leader Adam Dunn easily beating him when it came to negative reaction from the overheated crowd of 24,142.
Dunn was 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts, lowering his average to .162. You have to wonder why he was even in the game against a pitcher of Sabathia's caliber, considering Dunn is now 3-for-73 (.041) with 32 strikeouts against left-handers this season.
Sabathia struck out Dunn with the tying run on second base in the sixth inning. And after Sabathia struck out Dunn again in the eighth with the tying run on first base, the crowd really let him have it.
Dunn's teammates again came to his defense.
“It's not easy when it doesn't seem like people are behind you,” Beckham said. “I know it's tough on him. Obviously he wants to do well; we want him to do well. It's hard.
“He's been upbeat the whole time, but it still hasn't come for him. There's still time. If he can just get going for us in any capacity, we have a good chance to win.”
Pierzynski gave the credit to Sabathia for being good, so you again have to wonder why Dunn was in the lineup, even with Paul Konerko (sore left leg) sitting out.
“I love Adam Dunn, on and off the field,” Pierzynski said. “Everyone's been there. If you've ever played this game, you've struggled. This is not an easy game to play. There's only so much you can do.
“You've got to put the work in; he's done that, he's put the time in and he's trying to make adjustments. He's got some hits the last week or so.
“But facing CC Sabathia tonight, he's one of the best left-handed pitchers in baseball. His last at-bat he went 98 (mph), 98 and a 75 mph slider to strike him out.
“I mean tip your hat to the other guy. I thought he had some good swings early in the game, he just missed the ball his first at-bat. It just didn't work out.”