Lopez limits Cubs, Sox knock Quintana around in 10-4 rout
The White Sox faced left-hander Jose Quintana for the first time since trading him to the Cubs in the middle of last season for highly-touted prospects Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease.
It's still too early to fully evaluate that deal, with both Jimenez and Cease still in the minor leagues, but the White Sox made a compelling case that they'll be just fine without their former stalwart in their 10-4 win over the Cubs on Friday.
"The offense that they created today," manager Rick Renteria said, "it's contagious."
The offense jumped on Quintana with 5 consecutive hits to start the second inning. Kevan Smith delivered the big blow, a 3-run 438-foot homer to put the White Sox ahead, 3-1.
The South Siders kept mashing on offense, even after Quintana was removed with nobody out in the sixth. They finished with a season-high 19 hits, Each of the 11 White Sox to step to the plate recorded at least one.
Daniel Palka pinch-hit for Smith in the sixth against righty Dillon Maples and ripped a 2-run homer. It was Palka's 27th home run of the season, the most among rookies this season.
"He's not afraid," Renteria said of Palka. "He wants to swing the bat. I think if he gets the pitch he can handle, because of his strength, the bat speed that he has, he has a chance to do what he did today."
Jose Rondon and Avisail Garcia joined the hit party with consecutive singles to start the seventh, and Welington Castillo and Yoan Moncada each picked up their third knocks of the game.
Overshadowed by the offensive outburst was right-hander Reynaldo Lopez, who held the potent Cubs offense to one run over seven innings and struck out eight. The lone blemish for Lopez came right away, when Daniel Murphy smacked the first leadoff home run of his career.
The problem in the first inning, Lopez said, is he reverted back to an old mechanical flaw he used to have. Instead of getting on top of the ball when he threw it, Lopez was dropping his arm angle, which hindered his command.
Castillo spotted the problem and told Lopez after the first inning. From there, it was slight work for the 24-year-old, who is working through his first full season in the big leagues.
"That has been the key for me," Lopez said through an interpreter. "I've always said I'm always learning. I'm always trying to learn in every outing and apply that lesson in the next one. My arm angle, my plan for every outing, those are things that I try to execute the best that I can."
Lopez is the first Sox pitcher since 1989 to allow one run or less and complete six innings in five-straight outings. He has a 0.79 ERA over 34 innings in that span.
"I executed my pitches, kept the hitters the off balance and tried to attack the strike zone," Lopez said. "I think it was a very good outing today."