White Sox, streaking Anderson set for matchup with Indians
Cleveland Indians (93-65, second in the AL Central) vs. Chicago White Sox (69-88, third in the AL Central)
Chicago; Thursday, 8 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Indians: Aaron Civale (3-3, 1.82 ERA) White Sox: Dylan Cease (4-7, 5.80 ERA)
BOTTOM LINE: Chicago’s Anderson puts 12-game hit streak on the line against Indians.
The White Sox are 35-36 against AL Central opponents. The Chicago offense has compiled a .261 batting average as a team this season, good for eighth in the league. Tim Anderson leads the team with a mark of .339.
The Indians are 48-27 against opponents from the AL Central. The Cleveland pitching staff owns a combined team ERA of 3.68, Shane Bieber leads the staff with a mark of 3.28. The White Sox won the last meeting 8-3. Ross Detwiler earned his third victory and Welington Castillo went 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs for Chicago. Bieber took his eighth loss for Cleveland.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jose Abreu leads the White Sox with 175 hits and is batting .282. Castillo is 5-for-15 with a double, two home runs and nine RBIs over the last 10 games for Chicago.
Francisco Lindor leads the Indians with 168 hits and is batting .287. Oscar Mercado is 13-for-42 with four doubles, five home runs and 14 RBIs over the last 10 games for Cleveland.
LAST 10 GAMES: White Sox: 4-6, .311 batting average, 5.18 ERA, outscored by one run
Indians: 7-3, .266 batting average, 3.30 ERA, outscored opponents by 24 runs
White Sox Injuries: Carlos Rodon: (elbow), Michael Kopech: (elbow), Lucas Giolito: (lat), Dylan Covey: (shoulder), Ryan Burr: (elbow), Jon Jay: (hip), Leury Garcia: (shoulder).
Indians Injuries: Danny Salazar: (groin), Jefry Rodriguez: (shoulder), Tyler Olson: (undisclosed), Corey Kluber: (arm), A.J. Cole: (shoulder), Cody Anderson: (elbow), Tyler Naquin: (knee), Jason Kipnis: (wrist), Christian Arroyo: (forearm).