Game 1
Jose Quintana (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jeanmar Gomez (3-2 3.19 ERA)
Jose Quintana will get his first major league start because John Danks was recently put on the DL for having shoulder soreness. In AA, he pitched 35.1 innings and had a 3.06 ERA, 26 Ks, and 11 BBs. He made his big league debut in the bullpen for the White Sox and will now have a chance for his first start. Nobody knows whether or not he will have a good start, but the White Sox can hope that he comes out confident and by having stuff that none of the players have seen, he can fool some of their batters.
Gomez has been pretty good recently. In his last three starts he is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA. He had a pretty strong start against the Marlins on Saturday and hasn't allowed a run in his last 16 innings. The last time that he pitched against the Sox, he gave up 6 runs in one inning. His pitching could go either way against the Sox and if players like Konerko, De Aza, and Rios keep up their hot streaks the White Sox can easily win this game.
The key to this game will be whether or not Quintana has the stuff to beat a major league team. The White Sox offense will have to back him up by scoring quite a few runs, but I think the Sox have a great shot to win this game.
Game 2
Jake Peavy (5-1 2.39 ERA) vs. Derek Lowe (6-2 2.15 ERA)
Jake Peavy has probably been the best pitching story of the year. He had a terrible year last year and came back this year and is dominating teams. He isn't up to the level he was when he won the Cy Young, but he is doing a great job being the second pitcher in this rotation. In his last three starts, he is 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA and 16 strikeouts. If he continues to pitch like he has previously, he gives the Sox a great chance to win this game.
Derek Lowe has pitched well this season and recently. He's had two quality starts in a row, one in which he pitched a complete game shutout. In his last three, he is 2-1 with a 2.71 ERA and 5 Ks. He'll be a tough test for the White Sox offense, but since they are so hot recently that challenge might not be a challenge at all. In 64.2 innings pitched against the White Sox he has a losing record at 1-2 and has 3.34 ERA and 43 strikeouts. The White Sox haven't really struggled against him and if they can score 3-5 runs, they can win the game easily.
Game 3
Gavin Floyd (3-5 4.66 ERA) vs. Ubaldo Jimenez (5-3 5.02 ERA)
Floyd has been Mr. Inconsistent this year having a good start and then the next time he goes out, he is horrendous. If Floyd has one of his good starts, the White Sox have a good chance. If Floyd has a bad start it kills the entire team's momentum and they will probably lose.
Jimenez is having an alright year. He has a winning record, but his ERA isn't something to get worked up about. The same story goes for his last three starts (he is 2-1 with a 7.16 ERA). The White Sox will be able to score runs against him, but the key to winning will be stopping the Indians offense from backing him up like they have done so far this year.
Story of the Week
Paul Konerko is the story of the week for the White Sox. He has been extremely hot and is on a 10 game hitting streak. He leads the team in almost every hitting statistic and might even have a shot at MVP if he keeps hitting like he is. Right now he is .384/.462/.649 with 10 HR which is quite impressive and is obviously leading the team. In the last week he is batting .615 with 3 HRs and 6 RBIs which is the reason he is the story of the week.
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