Andrew Vaughn and Luis Robert Jr. provided instant offense for the Chicago White Sox on Monday against the Texas Rangers.
Vaughn connected on an Andrew Heaney slider for a home run to left with two outs and nobody on in the sixth inning at Guaranteed Rate Field. Five pitches later, Robert homered to center off a Heaney fastball.
It was the third time in the last five games the Sox went back-to-back.
Oddly enough, it was also the eighth and ninth consecutive solo home run for the team.
The Sox have hit at least one homer in 11 of their last 14 games, for a total of 22 during the stretch. They just want to see the long ball with a runner or two on base.
“It’s making a truth of the point that solos don’t beat you, crooked numbers beat you,” manager Pedro Grifol said before Tuesday’s game against the Rangers. “I’m happy that we’re hitting the ball in the air more, I’m happy we’re hitting homers. Now, we’ve got to add the other component to it, we’ve got to get on base prior to those homers.”
It’s the franchise’s longest streak of solo homers since 12 straight from Sept. 13-20, 2020, according to Elias.
“We’re driving the ball better, more extra-base hits, we’ve just got to string together more of them in a row,” right fielder Gavin Sheets told the Tribune on Tuesday. “Never going to complain about solo homers, but it’s tough to win with just solo homers.
“We’re collectively doing a much better job of it, we’re driving the ball better. Now we’ve just got to put together more consistency and do it when guys are on base, too. We’re working on it. You’ve seen it come together. Hopefully it can just happen quick.”
The Sox haven’t homered with someone on base since June 14, when Jake Burger hit a game-tying two-run homer in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.
Since then, Robert and Eloy Jiménez went back-to-back in the first and Burger and Vaughn did likewise in the fourth inning Thursday in Los Angeles to account for all the offense in a 5-4 loss in 11 innings.
Sheets hit a one-out homer in the fifth inning and Andrew Benintendi hit his first of the season in the sixth inning on Friday in a 3-2 loss to Seattle.
Jiménez went deep leading off the second Saturday against the Mariners, while Vaughn and Robert had the homers for the only runs in Monday’s 5-2 loss to the Rangers.
Some of the recent changes to the batting order, like inserting Benintendi in the leadoff spot, were done, in part, to generate more traffic on the bases ahead of the team’s sluggers
Patience at the plate could lead to more opportunities with runners on base. The Sox entered Tuesday last in the majors with 180 walks.
“We’re getting ourselves in some pretty good counts and then we’re chasing when we get ourselves in those counts,” Grifol said. “I think that’s wanting to do a little too much instead of like, ‘You know what? This is a ball, I’m going to go over to first base, I’m going to let the next guy do it.’
“That’s when you start hitting homers with guys on base, when you just turn it over to the next guy. I mean, nine solo homers, that’s hard to do. It’s just another indication where, take the walk, get to first base and let the next guy do his job.”
Reliever Garrett Crochet went on the 15-day injured list with left shoulder inflammation, the Sox announced Tuesday. The move is retroactive to Saturday.
Crochet is 0-1 with a 3.60 ERA and nine strikeouts in 10 appearances since being reinstated from the injured list on May 16. The team’s first-round pick in 2020, Crochet missed all last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
“He was a little sore,” Grifol said. “And he’s coming back from Tommy John, he’s pitched a lot. Not going to try to push him to do anything. Just give him a break and get him back to where he’s feeling 100% and bring him back.”
The Sox reinstated Jimmy Lambert from the IL. The right-hander, who is 2-1 with a 5.91 ERA, three holds and 24 strikeouts in 23 games (one start), retroactively went on the IL May 28 with right ankle inflammation.
In more pitching news, the Sox claimed right-handed Touki Toussaint off waivers from the Cleveland Guardians.
Toussaint, 27, went 2-1 with a 4.06 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 20 games (one start) with Triple-A Columbus. He made one start for the Guardians on Friday at Arizona, allowing two runs on three hits with five walks and two strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.
He is 10-8 with a 5.33 ERA, 109 walks and 183 strikeouts in 58 career games (24 starts) during parts of six seasons with the Atlanta Braves (2018-21), Los Angeles Angels (2022) and Cleveland (2023).
Grifol said it’s possible he’ll arrive Wednesday.
“He’ll join us and he’ll be part of the bullpen,” Grifol said. “On Friday he threw (82) pitches. So he can spot start, he can give us length out of the ’pen, he can go short. He gives us some versatility to what we’re looking for.”
()