Another forgettable start for Keuchel
Knowing time is growing short as he tries to secure a spot in the White Sox's postseason rotation, Dallas Keuchel waited out a two-hour, three-minute rain delay Friday night and went to work.
After a dismal August (1-3, 7.43 ERA), Keuchel looked revitalized while retiring the Royals in order on 7 pitches in the first inning.
The surge quickly faded.
Kansas City came back in the second and scored 2 runs off Keuchel, and the Royals put up 4 more in the third inning.
Keuchel was lifted after K.C.'s Andrew Benintendi led off the fourth with a double. He allowed 5 runs on 7 hits and his ERA is 5.22 for the season.
Kansas City went on to defeat the White Sox 7-2 at Kauffman Stadium.
Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada provided the Sox's lone offensive highlight early, extending his hitting streak to 17 games with a single in the third inning.
August was rough for Keuchel, but June (2-1, 2.70 ERA) has been the veteran left-hander's only decent month.
Back spasms sidelined Keuchel late last season and bothered him in the playoffs, but he said health issues are not the problem this year.
"I wish I had something for you guys that I wasn't feeling well or anything," Keuchel said. "I'll never make excuses, so this is honestly the best physically I've felt. And it's really kind of mind-boggling sometime the one or two mistake pitches that I make in the course of these games.
"My last 10 starts have been ugly, to say the least. So you take away one or two pitches here and there and you are looking at a different dynamic, but physically I feel great.
"I'm trying to right this thing in September and make some adjustments and hopefully we are sitting here talking about a lot of wins instead of a lot of pitiful performances."
Familiar face:
Carl Edwards Jr., who pitched for the Cubs from 2015-19, joined Class AAA Charlotte after being signed to a minor-league deal by the White Sox Wednesday.
The 30-year-old reliever pitched 1 scoreless inning against Norfolk on Thursday night and earned the save.
Edwards has pitched for the Braves and Blue Jays this season, along with five minor-league teams.
Lamb claimed:
Designated for assignment by the Sox Wednesday, Jake Lamb was claimed by Toronto on Friday. In 43 games with the White Sox this season, Lamb batted .212 with 6 home runs and 13 RBI.