The White Sox have exactly one day to see how they size up against their Wild Card series opponent in the Houston Astros. That means seeing where they might have an advantage.
The biggest advantage for the Sox at the outset appears to be their lineup against the Astros’ bullpen. Indeed, the Sox have a lineup that can mash against any pitching staff in baseball, which is why they’ve been able to register victories against both the best and worst opponents.
Naturally, Astros manager Joe Espada is going to put his best relievers out there to try to stymie the Sox’s bats as much as he can. But with him opting for a bullpen game for Game 1, that might not always be possible.
The leading contender for the Astros to get the bulk of the Game 1 innings appears to be AJ Blubaugh, who was 1-0 against the Sox this season and didn’t allow a run over three outings. Obviously, that would be a smart decision on Espada’s part.
But what about the Astros relievers the Sox have had success against this year? Who have they hit the best against during the season when they’ve played this team? Who do they want to see on the mound before the lights-out Josh Hader comes on to try and close a tight game?
Here are the Astros relievers the Sox have hit the best who were on the active roster to end the regular season. Playoff rosters haven’t been finalized yet, so this assumes these pitchers will be on it.
1. Bryan King
Bryan King recorded outs in the seventh inning of a 12-3 Sox win July 26 and definitely would have preferred a better outing. He threw two wild pitches, gave up two runs on three hits, and also hit a batter. Yet despite his wildness, he didn’t issue any walks. Can the White Sox capitalize again if he takes the mound early?
2. Miguel Ullola
Miguel Ullola relieved King for the eighth inning of that July 26 game and fared no better. He surrendered three runs on back-to-back homers by Junior Perez and Munetaka Murakami and also issued a leadoff walk to Chase Meidroth. To be clear, it was his worst outing of the season, but this won’t change the fact that the White Sox will likely feel very confident if he takes the mound.
3. Tatsuya Imai
Tatsuya Imai began the season as a starting pitcher but was moved to the bullpen in August. He pitched three innings when the Sox earned a 5-1 win over the Astros on Sept. 1. His first frame was the worst, as he issued walks to Murakami and Colson Montgomery before allowing both of them to score on a Randal Grichuk double.
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