Gamethread: White Sox at Guardians Game 1

Davis Martin gets game one as the White Sox look to right the ship against division foes.

Davis Martin is the 27th man today and is starting game one for the White Sox. In 21 innings over two starts and three relief appearances in MLB, Martin has a 4.29 ERA with decent command but a strikeout rate almost 12% lower than his Triple-A rate.

There was not much of a difference between the ERAs of his time as a starter (4.35) vs a reliever (4.22) but since he was sent back down to Triple-A he has 2.84 ERA over three starts. He even had a K-rate near 50% back in Charlotte, so he is coming back up at a high point and seems to have solidified his spot as the team’s sixth starter.

On the bump opposite Martin is a guy who is a bit better and has a little more pedigree, Shane Bieber. He is still a very effective pitcher, a 3.44 ERA and a 2.81 FIP, he is just not the same. His fastball is down about two MPH, and he is relying on his slider more than he has before. That has led to an 8% drop in strikeouts, but he has supplemented that loss with fewer walks. That does not mean he won’t no-hit the White Sox lineup, he just hit that wall a lot of pitchers hit in their 30s, at 27. It still is really working out for him.

Here are your lineups:

Here are the Guardians: