White Sox 3, Athletics 3: Sounds about right

Nick Nastrini looked good, but of course the Athletics had to tie it up in the ninth inning...

The Chicago White Sox almost got the win after a home run in the top of the ninth, but the Oakland Athletics decided to tie it up in the bottom of the inning, 3-3, and that was that. There are barely any videos or any coverage of today’s game, so bear with me.

Good news ... Nick Nastrini came out firing. He even had a pickoff in the bottom of the first inning, after Zack Gelof tried to steal third. Gavin Sheets put the team on the board in the top of the second inning after Eloy Jiménez reached on a fielding error, driving him right in with a double. Nastrini went four innings with three hits, no runs, two walks, and two strikeouts. Hopefully we see more and more of him as the No. 8 prospect holds a 0.82 ERA this spring.

Korey Lee opened up the top of the fifth inning with a solo home run to give the team a 2-0 lead. Lee now has three home runs this spring, tripling his 2023 total. He is making a strong case to break camp with the team, as he also has a .350 average along with eight RBIs.

Jesse Chavez replaced Nastrini to start the bottom of the fifth inning, and that didn’t go so well. Shea Langeliers and Darell Hernaiz started off the inning with back-to-back singles, Lawrence Butler reached on a fielding error by Paul DeJong, and a wild pitch scored Langeliers. Another run scored on a ground out to tie the game, and things would stay tied until the ninth inning.

Jonathan Cannon had an impressive showing, taking over for Chavez going the last four innings with four hits, one run, and four strikeouts. This was his third appearance of the spring, and he holds a 2.57 ERA with eight strikeouts over seven innings pitched.

Nothing much happened until the top of the ninth inning, when Sheets had a one-out homer to give the White Sox the lead. Surely this would lock the win in, right? Never with the White Sox. Haven’t we learned our lesson? Will Simpson hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the inning, and the game ended anticlimactically with a tie.

I wish there was more excitement, but that’s it for today.

The team is back at Camelback Ranch tomorrow against the Cleveland Guardians, as newcomer Drew Thorpe will take the mound in his South Side debut. It will be exciting to see someone from the Dylan Cease trade so soon, and see what he has to offer for this struggling pitching staff.

Everyone enjoy the rest of your St. Patrick’s Day!

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