Jake Peavy’s pitching helps Chicago White Sox defeat Washington Nationals 3-0 – MLB Update
Jake Peavy pitched impeccably to guide the Chicago White Sox to a 3-0 victory over Washington Nationals at Cellular Field, Chicago on Saturday, June 25.
Chicago saw Peavy turn the tide against the Nationals only after a night when they beat the White Sox 9-5.
However, for the Nationals it was scarcely good news given the fact that this was the second defeat in the 14 games they have played.
John Danks pitched a scoreless first inning to contain the Nationals’ hitters followed by Carlos Quentin’s RBI single when Tom Gorzelanny was dispatched as the starter for the Nationals. The White Sox hitters had two hits in the inning and a single that
gave them a 1-0 lead.
"I thought we got a break when Danks left the game," Nationals interim manager John McLaren said. "I thought we were going to hit their bullpen. He had some pitches that were unhittable."
Brian Bruney had to leave the mound for the reasons unknown, Jake Peavy came out with sheer confidence, pitching innings that literally put the Nationals’ hitter into immense confusion.
The four innings that Peavy pitched, he allowed only one hit while the White Sox offence waited for an opportunity to take their score up.
"I had good stuff, no doubt about it," Peavy said. "But I've had that stuff in a couple of my starts. I just felt good today. When you feel good you're going to go out there and (perform well)."
The eighth inning heralded a complete change in the game as Ramon Castro hit an eagerly sought two-run homer, tripling the lead against a strong Nationals’ defence which had overpowered them only a night before.
Castro’s homer brought the White Sox in the position to dislodge the Nationals’ offence and they did with the help of Sergio Santos who had two strike-outs to finish the game 3-0.
The White Sox managed to put in a good effort to restrict the Nationals’ offence and get a much needed victory. The Nationals struggled to put runs on the board, as they faced the brilliant pitching line-up of the White Sox.
Having tied the series 1-1, the White Sox will certainly assert itself on Sunday. After 104 pitches that Peavy contributed with over 93.0 mph speed, he is said to be the strongest contender to repeat the show.
With five strikeouts of Peavy, the White Sox expect to get an equally robust support from the offence, which has lately struggled to contribute. It will be interesting to see how the White Sox carry their winning momentum into their next game of the series
and battle it out with the Nationals.
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