Chicago White Sox starter Samardzija scorched again
Jeff Samardzija's downward spiral continued Tuesday night in a miserable start against the Oakland Athletics.
Stung by a poor first inning once again, Samardzija huffed and puffed his way through 3 innings and allowed 10 runs on 11 hits and 3 walks.
The A's pounded the Chicago White Sox 17-6, and Leury Garcia and Alexei Ramirez had to pitch the eighth and ninth innings, respectively. According to Elias, the Sox had to pitch two position players in a game for the first time since 1902.
"It's been tough, especially it's tough when you've got your position players out there pitching on the day you start," said Samardzija (9-13, 5.27 ERA). "It doesn't feel good and it's not what you want."
Samardzija identified a big problem.
"For me, it's that sinker away," he said. "It's such a big pitch for me and 3-2 you're going with the sinker away to (Oakland's Josh) Reddick and he hits a home run. That's a pretty telltale sign of what's going on. That's my bread and butter, that sinker down and away and picking that corner. When that pitch is on the plate it makes for a long day."
The sinker has not been there for Samardzija for the better part of two months, and one has to wonder if the pressure of hitting the free-agent market at the end of the season has taken a toll.
"I don't know," Samardzija said. "I'll have to look back on that when it's all said and done and go from there. But it's just the situation you're in. You've got to perform. It doesn't matter if it's a contract year or not or you're old, young, it doesn't matter. You have to go out and do well."
Ramirez made his first career relief appearance and pitched a scoreless ninth inning.
"It wasn't the ideal situation for the team," Ramirez said through a translator. "But because of the score and the situation, I just talked with Robin (Ventura) and said, 'Hey, if you need someone to pitch, I can do it.' I enjoyed it. It was very special."
Monday rewind:
The White Sox beat Oakland Monday night, but it was an unusual win to say the least.
Leading 7-3 in the ninth inning with closer David Robertson on the mound, the A's rallied to tie the game thanks to a catcher's interference call on Tyler Flowers that wiped out a game-ending double play. Flowers and Robertson also got crossed up on a passed ball that allowed the tying run to score.
The Sox wound up winning 8-7 in 14 innings on Melky Cabrera's RBI single, and Robertson and Flowers joked about the ninth after the game.
Manager Robin Ventura wasn't laughing.
"Well, they messed it up," he said of the passed ball. "Obviously you miss the sign, and they're crossed up. It doesn't happen very often, so that's the part that just can't happen. Even watching the whole inning was bizarre anyway, but that's the one you get upset with."