Hogs in the Bigs, Week 7 Review

Let’s talk South Siders baseball. The Chicago White Sox are absolutely rocking it this year, with a top-five offense and a top-five pitching staff. Pro Hogs Dallas Keuchel and James McCann own outsized roles in that clubhouse.

If those two got a World Series ring in this stupid year, that would be a pretty sweet deal.

Brian Anderson (Miami Marlins) – .227 BA, 5 HR, 14 R, 19 RBI

Brian had a nice week at the plate, got a dinger off the Mets, yeah, yeah, yeah, blah, blah, blah...

Have you seen his cleats?

Previous Week: Anderson’s batting average has continued to dip, and he’s 0-fer his last eleven. He did have a nice day on Tuesday, scoring two runs and knocking in two more in a doubleheader sweep of the Mets.

Jalen Beeks (Tampa Bay Rays) – 1-1, 3.26 ERA, 26 K, 1 Save

Bad news struck Jalen pretty hard, when he tore his ulnar collateral ligament. He’s done for the year and will undergo Tommy John surgery. So he’s done for 2021, too. May he keep his head up, get after recovery, and come back stronger than ever.

Andrew Benintendi (Boston Red Sox) – .103 BA, 4 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB

Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke hopes that Benintendi will come back this season but mentioned the possibility that his season may be done. You know Benny wants to make up for that ugly start to the season, but he may need to focus on coming out of the 2021 gates strong. The Red Sox aren’t playing for anything this year.

Previous Week: Our boy is still feeling that strain in his ribs, so he’s still out for awhile.

Logan Forsythe (Miami Marlins) – .118 BA, 1 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI; 0-0, 9.00 ERA

Forsythe went down with an oblique strain and was placed on the 60-day IL. He’s done for the year.

Dallas Keuchel (Chicago White Sox) – 6-2, 2.19 ERA, 32 K

Big D was big-time this week, not allowing a single run in his two starts. On Sunday he was on pace to storm through a complete game, but he left the game in the fifth inning with lower back stiffness. Hopefully, rest will cure that. His ERA this year is lower than it was in 2015, his Cy Young year.

Previous Week: Keuchel had another quality start last week, going six innings and allowing two runs to the Pirates on Wednesday. His seven Ks is his second highest output this season. The White Sox are tied for first in the deepest division in baseball this year. Big D’s going to be pitching in some big games in September.

James McCann (Chicago White Sox) – .318 BA, 3 HR, 12 R, 8 RBI

The McCannon had another solid week at the plate, highlighted by his 2-for-4 day on Monday, when he scored two key runs against the Twins. He’s been a big part of the Sox’ success atop the AL Central.

Previous Week: McCann got a hit, a run, and an RBI in both of the games he played in this week, but most importantly, he became the first Hog to catch a no-hitter when he caught Lucas Giolito’s big night.

Drew Smyly (San Francisco Giants) – 0-0, 3.24 ERA, 11 K

Drew threw about 50 pitches in a simulated start on Saturday. It’s getting about that time. The Giants are in the hunt for the last wild-card spot, so they’ll love to bolster that pitching.

Previous Week: Drew is finally almost done with rehab. After throwing two bullpen sessions last week, he’ll head to the Giants’ alternate training site to face live batters. If all goes well, he’ll be back to pitching in games as early as the weekend.

Ryne Stanek (Miami Marlins) – 0-0, 27.00 ERA, 1 K

He back! Stanek was activated off the IL on Friday. He hasn’t entered a game yet, but expect him to get back in the thick of it as the Marlins fight for their postseason lives. They are currently in a virtual tie with the Giants for the last wild-card spot in the NL.

Previous Week: Ryne’s been on the IL since August 4th for an undisclosed reason. No news has been reported since. So...idk?

How did I miss this from April?! It’s gonna have me daydreaming for the next week.

Thanks for reading. Go ahead and follow @ArkansasFight on Twitter. For Hog reactions and puns from the guy who wanted to call this feature “Pigs in the Bigs”, follow @lukecdavis.