White Sox vs. Astros Preview: Everything To Know for Opening Day
Opening Day is finally upon us! Here is everything you need to know to prepare for the first White Sox game of the 2023 season!
Streaks On The Line
The White Sox will open the season in Minute Maid Park on Thursday night to take on the defending World Series champion Houston Astros. The first pitch is scheduled for 6:08 p.m. CT on ESPN. The Astros will unveil their 2022 World Series championship banner before the game.
Defending World Series champions have lost their last four Opening Day matchups (Red Sox 2019, Nationals 2020, Dodgers 2021, Braves 2022). The White Sox hope to keep that streak alive.
However, the Astros are riding a ten-game win streaking on Opening Days. This is the current MLB record, which is impressive considering the streak began in 2012 and survived through a full-scale rebuild. The Astros set the record last year when they beat the Angels 3-1, surpassing the Red’s nine-game Opening Day streak from 1983-1991.
Pair Of Cy Young Candidates Take The Mound
The Opening Day starters feature a pair of Cy Young contenders in Dylan Cease and Framber Valdez. This will be one of the best pitching matchups you will find in the American League. The two each finished in the top five of the AL Cy Young voting last season.
Cease is fresh off a breakout 2022 campaign, establishing himself as the White Sox’s new ace. The 27-year-old righty posted a 14-8 record with a 2.20 ERA and 227 strikeouts in 184 innings. He ranked fifth in the AL in bWAR, second in strikeouts, and 10th in innings.
The only pitcher better than Cease in the American League was the Astro’s former number-one starter, Justin Verlander. Verlander was the unanimous first-place finisher after receiving all 30 first-place votes. Cease finished behind Verlander in the Cy Young voting with 97 points.
This could be the start of a revenge tour for Cease, who was snubbed from the All-Star game and MLB First Team honors.
His opponent, Valdez, was named an MLB First Team Starting Pitcher last season. Valdez posted a 2.82 ERA, with 194 strikeouts and a 1.16 WHIP in 201.1 innings of work. He had a stretch from July 24th to September 18th, where he won eight of his ten starts.
The southpaw finished the season with a 17-6 record and set an MLB record with 25 consecutive quality starts. Cease has the third-best odds to win the AL Cy Young this year, while Valdez comes in at twelve best.
Managerial Debut Vs. Future Hall Of Famer
After years of disheartening losses in big games, Dusty Baker finally won the big one. The 73-year-old won his first World Series as a manager after 25 years of trying.
Baker will undoubtedly be a Hall of Famer after compiling a .539 winning percentage, three Manager of the Year Awards, and three Pennants. He enters the 2023 campaign just seven wins shy of 3,000.
Meanwhile, Pedro Grifol makes his managerial debut for the White Sox after spending a decade in Kansas City.
Likely Starting Lineups
White Sox
- Tim Anderson SS
- Andrew Benintendi LF
- Luis Robert Jr CF
- Eloy Jimenez DH
- Yoan Moncada 3B
- Andrew Vaughn 1B
- Yasmani Grandal C
- Oscar Colas RF
- Elvis Andrus 2B
The biggest question in the White Sox lineup is whether Oscar Colas will get the start in right field.
Manager Pedro Grifol may not want the rookie left-handed hitter going up against Valdez. If this is the case, don’t be surprised if you see Eloy Jimenez getting the nod in right field. Jimenez got a few starts in Spring Training under his belt and worked heavily on his outfield defense during the offseason.
This would mean that Yasmani Grandal could shift to designated hitter, and Seby Zavala could get the start behind the plate. The other option would be inserting Romy Gonzalez into right field.
Astros
- Jeremy Pena SS
- Alex Bregman 3B
- Yordan Alvarez DH
- Kyle Tucker RF
- Jose Abreu 1B
- Chas McCormick CF
- Jake Myers LF
- Mauricio Dubon 2B
- Martin Maldonado C
Jose Altuve will not be starting at second base on Opening Day for the Astros for the first time since 2011. Altuve got hit by a pitch and fractured his thumb during the World Baseball Classic.
Reunion With Jose Abreu
Jose Abreu will be playing his first regular season MLB game wearing something other than a White Sox uniform. How fitting it is against his former team.
In nine seasons with the White Sox, Abreu tallied 1,445 hits, 863 RBIs, 243 home runs, and slashed .292/.354/.506. He was also named Rookie of the Year in 2014, AL MVP in 2020, and was a three-time All-Star. Eventually, his number 79 will be retired on the South Side.
As Rick Hahn said, “It will be like seeing Jordan in a Wizard uniform.”
However, he provided the White Sox with bulletin board material over the offseason when he said he felt disrespected by the organization and criticized the clubhouse culture.
“When you’re at a place where maybe you’re not being respected to the point where you think you should be, you just have to go somewhere else,” Abreu said.
“I think sometimes talking about the past can bring a lot of animosity,” he later added, “but I think the best way I can put it is just that we weren’t a real family. And I’m hoping maybe [the Sox] can get to a situation, they can get to a situation where a lot of the guys there do deserver to be in a good situation, they can have it there and be able to win. But I don’t really have too much more to say about that.”
Abreu also threw one last jab at the White Sox by comparing them to the Astros.
“These guys here, they’re a real family,” he said. “Obviously, I can see why the Astros organization has had as much success as they’ve had in the last couple of years.”
That is a tough pill to swallow from someone who was the face of the franchise face for nine seasons. While his comments are likely accurate, they probably didn’t sit well with the players still in the clubhouse. Opening Day already carries some extra weight, but Abreu’s comments likely provided additional motivation.
At the same time, it could also mean Abreu will be playing with a chip on his shoulder.
Injury Reports
Yoan Moncada will be available after an injury scare in the WBC. He was dealing with lower back soreness and some bruised ribs, but Rick Hahn told reporters on Wednesday that he would be ready to go.
The Astros will be without starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. for the entire series. McCullers suffered a forearm strain while throwing during a bullpen session on February 14th. Veteran outfielder Micheal Brantley will also be playing. He is still recovering from off-season surgery.