The AL Central is easily one of the worst divisions in baseball. The White Sox currently hold an 11.5 game lead over their next closest rivals, the soon-to-be Cleveland Guardians. The Sox are also the only Central club with a record over .500. All this to say, politely, that they might be the only team in the AL Central the Rays didn’t want to play.
They’re a good team, really good, with pretty excellent pitching, and one of their best was on the mound tonight in the shape of Lucas Giolito. Taking the bump for the Rays: Michael Wacha, a pitcher whose future as a starter is deeply uncertain, and every outing is a necessary opportunity to prove if he should get to keep his job.