The Cubs hit the road for their longest remaining trip of the season, a three-city, nine-game swing against sub-.500 teams.
It remains the window for the Cubs to make any possible move up the National League wild-card standings and finally move above .500 for the first time in nearly three months.
The White Sox return to Guaranteed Rate Field to begin a 10-game homestand, their longest of the season, with Friday’s opener series against the Detroit Tigers.
At 31-97, the Sox are nearing 100 losses. It has happened only five times in franchise history, including last year when they went 61-101.
This would be the first time the Sox have had back-to-back seasons with 100 losses. They lost 106 in 1970, 102 in 1932, 101 in 1948 and 2023 and 100 in 2018.
Every Friday during the regular season, Tribune baseball writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Cubs and White Sox. Want more? Sign up for our newsletters.
Cubs catcher Miguel Amaya turns things around at the plate
Growing up in Panama, Miguel Amaya dreamed of what it would feel like to hit a grand slam in the majors.
He could definitively say after Thursday that the experience feels amazing. Amaya’s slam in the second inning Thursday propelled the Cubs to a 10-2 blowout of the Tigers to take the series and end the homestand 4-2. Amaya had his first three-hit game of the season and became the second Cub to tally five RBIs in a game this year.
“It doesn’t matter where I’m hitting the lineup, I’m going to be the same guy,” Amaya said. “Just staying with my approach and controlling what I can control.”
Since making an adjustment to his batting stance, most notably eliminating his high step with his front foot to improve his timing, Amaya has been locked. He’s hitting .300 with four home runs and 13 RBIs since July 12.
“Putting more the ball in play, simplifying stuff, minimizing swings around pitches around the strike zone, being more consistent hitting the ball hard, gap to gap — I’ve been having good results so far,” Amaya said.
Manager Craig Counsell credited Amaya for making that type of change in-season and finding the consistency the Cubs believed he could tap into.
“They’re really hard for hitters to make, and Miggy made a significant one, I think you all can see it,” Counsell said. “It was significant, and the kind of results beforehand necessitated it, but it’s tough to do, and he’s done a really good job with it.”
Sox bench coach Doug Sisson emphasizes ‘tough, clean, smart baseball.’
Doug Sisson wasn’t having it.
The morning after a 6-1 loss to the Houston Astros that lacked crispness included two errors, the new Sox bench coach thought the team had something to prove.
“Nobody was happy with that, and you shouldn’t be,” Sisson said. “The goal is to play clean baseball, the way it’s supposed to be played.
“The key when things start to fall apart, you can’t let anything break you. You’re allowed to get pissed off. If you have a bad fourth inning, get back on track and play the game the way it’s supposed to be played.”
The Sox played sharper in Sunday’s 2-0 loss.
“The record is irrelevant,” he said. “It’s a day-by-day thing. If you’re a competitor worth your salt, take great pride in playing smart, clean baseball every day. It’s not negotiable.”
Sisson, 60, was in his seventh season as the field coordinator for the organization’s player development system (2018-24) before taking over his new role when the Sox made changes to the coaching staff along with firing manager Pedro Grifol on Aug. 8. He was the Sox outfield/baserunning instructor from 2013-15.
“Excited because of the challenge,” Sisson said. “The challenge of there’s more in the tank, let’s see if we can go out there and play tough, high-energy, quality baseball for the last six weeks, which I know we can.”
Interim manager Grady Sizemore said he has picked up plenty from Sisson.
“Great mind for the game,” Sizemore said. “I like the way he sees it. I like the way he approaches each game.”
Sisson said his duties include keeping Sizemore abreast of what’s ahead.
“During the game it’s making sure I stay, whether you want to say nine hitters ahead, three innings ahead, and just making sure that he’s never caught off guard and is aware of what we can do in any given situation to turn it into a strength for us,” Sisson said.
Success down the stretch in Sisson’s eyes is “playing tough, clean, smart baseball on a daily basis.”
“This thing is about one day at a time, go out and give your best effort and execute,” Sisson said. “And the scoreboard takes care of itself.”
Number of the week: .133
The Sox are 4-26 since the All-Star break. The .133 winning percentage would be the lowest after the break in Major League Baseball history. The Philadelphia A’s had a .197 winning percentage (15-61) in the second half in 1943.
Tracking the White Sox’s record-setting losses
Record: 31-97.
The Sox have the worst record through 128 games in franchise history. The previous mark of 40-88 occurred in 1932.
They’re on pace for 122 losses, which would eclipse the modern-day record of 120 set by the expansion New York Mets in 1962. The Sox record is 106, set in 1970.
The Sox need to go 12-22 in their final 34 games to avoid tying the Mets’ mark.
Week ahead: Cubs
- Friday: at Marlins, 6:10 p.m., Marquee
- Saturday: at Marlins, 3:10 p.m., Marquee
- Sunday: at Marlins, 12:40 p.m., Marquee
- Monday: at Pirates, 5:40 p.m., Marquee
- Tuesday: at Pirates, 5:40 p.m., Marquee
- Wednesday: at Pirates, 11:35 p.m., Marquee
- Thursday: off
Jack Neely didn’t have to wait long for his next opportunity.
Neely, the towering, 6-foot-8 rookie right-hander, made his MLB debut Wednesday in an 8-2 to loss to the Tigers. The outing didn’t go exactly as one would hope in their first big-league outing. Neely, 24, allowed three hits and four runs in the ninth inning, along with walking one batter and surrendering a home run as he struggled to find the zone.
“Your first big-league experience, that’s a little bit of an out-of-body experience,” Counsell said. “You almost take it, like, ‘I did it, it’s over. Let’s just go back to pitching.’ Don’t take too much from it, good or bad, would be kind of my advice.”
Neely had roughly 20 family and friends in the stands at Wrigley Field for his debut.
“I mean, it’s a dream come true,” Neely said. “Didn’t go the way we wanted, but hopefully the first of many.”
Counsell went back to Neely in the ninth Thursday with the Cubs up 10-2. This time Neely showed why the Cubs are so high on his fastball-slider combination. He struck out two of the four batters he faced, getting Andy Ibáñez to whiff at a slider down and away for his first career strikeout.
“It’s just good for Jack to get right back out there,” Counsell said. “You kind of just throw away the first game, all the nerves and everything. The slider was good today, got a couple strikeouts on it so it’s good for his confidence, for sure, to get back out there and kind of feel like himself.”
Week ahead: White Sox
- Friday: vs. Tigers, 7:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Saturday: vs. Tigers, 6:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Sunday: vs. Tigers, 1:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Monday: vs. Tigers, 7:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Tuesday: vs. Rangers, 7:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Wednesday: vs. Rangers, 7:10 p.m., NBCSCH
- Thursday: vs. Rangers, 1:10 p.m., NBCSCH
The Sox will get a glimpse of the future Saturday when first-round pick Hagen Smith makes his professional debut for Class A Winston-Salem at Aberdeen.
The Sox selected Smith with the No. 5 pick in this year’s draft after he went 9-2 with a 2.04 ERA and 161 strikeouts in 16 starts with Arkansas in 2024.
Smith is ranked as the No. 32 prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline. Smith and Double-A Birmingham pitcher Noah Schultz (No. 15) are the highest-rated left-handers in the rankings.
What we’re reading this morning
Quotable
“That’s why you put guys on the 40-man and sign nonroster free agents because you just don’t know who that’s going to be. But what’s cool is, it, there’s opportunity and you always have the ability to establish yourself if you get the opportunity.” — Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy on rookie reliever Porter Hodge and his emergence since spring training
