Chicago White Sox ace Sale steps up as leader
With 12 or more strikeouts in five straight starts, Chris Sale is on a historic run.
The White Sox' ace left-hander joined Hall of Famers Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez as the only major-league pitchers to accomplish the feat.
Sale also joins Johnson, Martinez and Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers in history with 10 or more strikeouts in six straight starts.
With very little offensive support over the stretch, Sale is 3-2 with a 1.19 ERA to go with 75 strikeouts in 45⅓ innings.
"You would like to get more out of it," manager Robin Ventura said. "That's the biggest thing. You would like to see him go on a run and (have) the wins go with it."
Ventura liked Sale's comments Friday night after a wrenching 2-1 loss to Texas.
When asked if Sox pitchers have to throw shutouts to overcome the offensive shortcomings, Sale said he didn't like the question and stood up for his teammates.
"That's his maturity level," Ventura said. "His leadership qualities are coming out. You are looking at a guy that is in his fourth year of starting. This is what is taking shape.
"This is the guy that he has become. It's impressive. You are seeing a team guy first and he goes out and pitches. It's also helping with his pitching. It's what he can control."
Second chance:
After giving up 2 runs in the ninth inning Friday night and spoiling Chris Sale's dominant outing, White Sox closer David Robertson retired Texas in order Saturday and earned the save.
"As a reliever, you are going to get opportunities," Robertson said. "You are not always going to be good in them. You have to be able to push them to the back of your mind and go into the next day. You are not going to be perfect every time. It's hard. You can't let the game eat you up, so to speak."
Q&A:
Manager Robin Ventura and Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf gave each other hugs on the field during batting practice Friday and then talked for 10-15 minutes.
"He's like anybody else, he wants to know what's going on," Ventura said. "I think he'd probably look at the offense and say why? But you have those conversations, they're very up front and honest. He knows the team. You give him the answers for the questions that he asks."
Farm report:
Class AAA Charlotte second baseman Micah Johnson is batting .389 (14-for-36) over his last 10 games. In 28 games with the Knights, Johnson is hitting .311 and he's made 3 errors.
Johnson opened the season as the White Sox' starting second baseman but was demoted due to defensive shortcomings. Johnson was replaced by Carlos Sanchez, who is batting .141 since being called up from Charlotte.
Knights third baseman Matt Davidson is tied for the International League lead with 10 home runs and ranks fifth with 37 RBI.
On the flip side, Davidson is batting .220 and leads the league with 91 strikeouts.