When you’re 7-20, it’s hard to be excited, and Luis Robert showed that on Saturday.
During the first inning, the Chicago White Sox center fielder hit a weak dribbler to the left side of the pitcher’s mound.
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Chris Fauchner had to rush to get to the ball, otherwise he would have been in no man’s land.
When he backhanded it, knowing Robert’s speed, he had no choice but to jump, and the ball took a long bound toward first base.
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White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. runs to second after hitting a two-run double against the Philadelphia Phillies at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago. (Kamil Krzaczynski-USA Today Sports)
However, it turns out that Fauchner may have had time to get up and throw, because Robert wasn’t in a rush.
It’s very clear that if Robert had run down the line, it would have been an infield single. Instead, it was a ground.
Pedro Grifol is in his first season as MLB manager after spending 10 years as head coach of the Kansas City Royals, and today’s managers like to support their players and give them the benefit of the doubt. However, this was not the case.
Grifol benched the former top prospect almost immediately, and in the top of the second inning, he was replaced by Oscar Colas.
Some wondered if Robert had stopped due to injury, but reports quickly surfaced that it was a manager’s decision. After the match, Grifol confirmed that he was the one who benched Robert because of his «mental lapse».
Chicago started the day going 7-20, which is a 42-win pace, having lost their last nine games. Robert, like the Red Sox, is also ice cold, hitting .215 with a .661 OPS.
Luis Robert Jr. of the White Sox watches his two-run double off Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler during his double header on April 18, 2023, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
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After a 93-win season in 2021, many thought 2022 would be the year of the White Sox, but they took a big step back by going 81-81 and firing Tony La Russa.
With the signing of Grifol, there was hope that Chicago could return to its 2021 style, but it has been far from that.
Despite the bench, it looked like the Sox were going to come away with a win: Lance Lynn even had a no-hitter into the sixth. But it quickly turned into hell.
Luis Robert of the Chicago White Sox bats against the Rangers at Globe Life Field on August 7, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Tim Heitman/Getty Images)
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The no-hitter was broken up after a solo home run by Wander Franco, and that was the start of a 10-run seventh inning for the Tampa Bay Rays. Tampa Bay had nine hits, five for extra-base hits, in the frame, and came away with a 12-3 victory as Chicago fell to 7-21 on the season.
The beating was so bad that fans began chanting «Sell the team» at Jerry Reinsdorf.