White Sox gearing up for 'the championship quarter'

CHICAGO -- White Sox manager Tony La Russa has spoken on a few occasions during the 2022 season about August and September being the most enjoyable months if a team gets to that point with a viable chance to contend.

With August beginning Monday, the White Sox players hope their manager’s words are prophetic. Chicago entered these final 61 games with a 4-1 victory over Oakland on Sunday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field, giving them the series win and putting them back over .500 at 51-50.

“We've been through a lot to get to this point,” said La Russa after Chicago won for the fourth time in five home games. “We're literally in contention, so we're going to be excited about it and treat every series like it's the last one we're going to play and know we have to get a lot of wins.”

“I put it into Australian Football terms: the third quarter is the championship quarter,” said closer Liam Hendriks, who converted his 11th straight save. “So I feel like August is the third quarter of the season. And it’s something that can make or break a championship run. That’s something that hopefully we can take the right trend starting tomorrow.”

To borrow a quote from onetime Chicago Bears coach Dave Wannstedt, all the pieces certainly seem to be in place for a big White Sox finish. This team was the odds-on preseason favorite to win the American League Central. They're now just two games behind the Twins (53-48) and one game behind the Guardians (52-49), and they are close to being fully healthy for the first time all season.

Having a true ace leading your rotation doesn’t hurt, and Dylan Cease (11-4) stands among the top starters in all of baseball. The right-hander allowed one earned run in six innings against the A’s (39-65) with seven strikeouts, improving to 7-2 with a 0.51 ERA and 90 strikeouts in his last 12 starts.

Cease has allowed four earned runs on four solo homers over 70 innings during that stretch. He joins the Mets’ Jacob deGrom (April 5-June 2, 2021) as the only non-opener starters in the modern era (since 1901) to allow one earned run or less in 12 straight starts. This sort of dominance has helped halt any White Sox struggles, while also kicking off their winning streaks.

“Yeah, it’s definitely something I strive for,” said Cease, who has a 2.01 ERA overall. “I want to be consistent. I want to be someone you can count on. So, to give us a chance to win almost every time, it’s as much as I can ask for.”

“Not every start is the same,” La Russa said. “So that gives the preparation, studying ... 'Wait a minute, who’s he going to be this time?' It’s very healthy for us and tough for them.”

José Abreu launched his 240th career home run, having now reached base in 31 of his last 32 games and hitting a robust .382 in that span. Eloy Jiménez also went deep, giving him three homers in his last six games.

There also figures to be help coming with the Trade Deadline on Tuesday at 5 p.m. CT. General manager Rick Hahn briefly talked with Hendriks and shortstop Tim Anderson in the clubhouse postgame on Sunday, which could be about anything. But the White Sox are known to give their leaders input when making some moves.

Hendriks loves that approach, with the front office trying to find out how a potential target is in the clubhouse, on the field or as a person.

“It could be the perfect fit, but the guy can be a [jerk] and change the morale of this clubhouse,” Hendriks said. “That’s something you never want to bring in, those trouble guys, especially when we have a tight unit in here.

“We want to make sure anyone who comes fits that mold and gets along with everybody in here. They come to and talk to and ask about guys and see if you’ve heard anything or played with a guy, what that clubhouse vibe is.”

Last year’s division title featured White Sox control from early on in the season. The fun might be just beginning this time around.

“If we reach our peak and start firing on all cylinders at the right time, it’s much better to do that late than it is to do that early,” Cease said. “We got all the rust out early.”