May 24, 2024, 11:46 am ET
The Chicago White Sox are already the worst team in the league, so they didn’t need this… Thursday night’s rally against the Baltimore Orioles was interrupted by a controversial runner’s interference call that ended the game .
The play resulted in a double play for the final outs in Baltimore’s 8-6 victory.
With two in and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Andrew Benintendi appeared. Shortstop Gunnar Henderson caught the ball (the umpires had called the infield fly rule anyway) for the second out, then ruled that Andrew Vaughn interfered with Henderson on the play.
“It was a big surprise,” said Vaughn, who was running at second and was thrown out. “I don’t feel like they talked him out of making a play. It was a high fly ball. We were all reading it. As a running back, I have to read it and make sure I can get back into the bag.”
White Sox manager Pedro Grifol argued vehemently with the umpires at the conclusion of the surprising final sequence.
Brutal ending to this Orioles-White Sox game. 😬
(🎥: @Keynote USASWhiteSox)pic.twitter.com/mRL319faFT
— the score (@lapuntuación) May 24, 2024
There was certainly confusion, and the play ended the rally for the White Sox, who had scored four runs in the ninth.
“I felt like we got out of there,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said.
Team manager Adrian Johnson said there is no discretion when a runner appears to make incidental contact with a defender, even if the play results in a defensive out.
“If it hinders the fielder in the attempt to field a batted ball, no intent is required and it is interference,” Johnson said after third base umpire Junior Valentine made the call to end the game.
“When you see interference, you call it.”
The White Sox, who have won just once in their last seven games, will again try to gain traction during this seven-game home series that began Thursday night.
The Orioles snapped a season-worst three-game losing streak by prevailing in the series opener.
“Thankfully we can breathe a little bit,” said Baltimore’s Jorge Mateo, who hit a three-run homer in the fourth inning.
The Orioles produced 13 hits, four by first baseman Ryan Mountcastle.
“We swung very well,” Hyde said. “A lot of guys who had been struggling a little bit took really good swings on the ball. We would have loved to see us add a little more.”
Still, the eight runs were the most in a six-game span for Baltimore.
Also notable were the six runs allowed by the Orioles. That tied the second-most scores by an opponent this year in any of Baltimore’s 30 wins.
On Friday, right-hander Corbin Burnes (4-2, 2.56 ERA) will start for the Orioles, looking for back-to-back wins after holding the Seattle Mariners without an earned run in six innings of Baltimore’s 6-3 victory on Sunday. . He struck out 11 for the second time this season.
“I’m happy with the way my stuff looks,” Burnes said. “Happy with how the ball is coming out. I can’t really complain about it.”
Burnes has worked at least six innings in his last five starts, although this will be only his second road assignment since April 20. He has made three appearances in his career against the White Sox, going 1-0 with a 4.70 ERA.
Among the negatives for the Orioles on Thursday night was that they used five relievers, including three in the ninth inning.
Right-hander Chris Flexen (2-4, 5.48 ERA) will be on the mound for Chicago, trying to recover from Sunday’s tough outing against the New York Yankees. He allowed seven runs and eight hits in four innings in Chicago’s 7-2 loss.
“It’s just about executing pitches,” Flexen said.
In three all-time starts against Baltimore, Flexen is 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA. The loss came last August when he was a member of the Colorado Rockies.
Information from The Keynote USA and Field Level Media was used in this report.
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