White Sox 9 - 4 Red Sox
Final
  for this game

White Sox-Red Sox Preview

Jul 28, 2015 - 3:59 AM The acquisition of Jeff Samardzija was one of the many moves the Chicago White Sox made in the offseason that had them believing they could make a run at the playoffs.

That hasn't been the case for the majority of the season and with Samardzija set to become a free agent this fall, he's the most likely candidate to be traded before Friday's deadline.

Samardzija takes the mound for what could be his last start with the White Sox on Tuesday night against the last-place Boston Red Sox, but Chicago's recent surge could make the decision on whether to deal him a little tougher.

The White Sox have been at or near the bottom of the AL Central all year behind the fewest runs in the majors, which could lead to them being sellers at the deadline.

Chicago, however, won 10-8 in the opener of this four-game series Monday after scoring 26 times while sweeping a four-game set in Cleveland. The White Sox (47-50), who have won nine of 10 on the road, are within 4 1/2 games of Minnesota for the second wild card.

"It's just the parity of the game right now. Within each front office of every team, they have an idea of how they feel it's going," Samardzija told MLB's official website. "Sometimes the record doesn't totally show the situation of the team, so I'm sure they assess that amongst themselves and go from there."

Contending teams would certainly be interested in Samardzija, who has turned things around after having a 4.93 ERA in early June. The right-hander has since gone 3-1 with a 2.55 ERA in eight starts, allowing one run and four hits in eight innings of an 8-1 win over Cleveland on Thursday.

Samardzija (7-5, 3.91 ERA) hasn't pitched against the Red Sox since 2012, though their top two offseason signings - Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval - faced him when he was with the Cubs and they were in the NL.

Ramirez is 8 for 19 with two doubles and Sandoval has gone 3 for 7 with a homer in the matchup.

The Red Sox added Ramirez and Sandoval after they finished last in the AL East in 2014, but it hasn't helped as that's again their place in the standings.

Boston (44-56) began to sell off parts Monday, sending outfielder Shane Victorino to the Los Angeles Angels for infielder Josh Rutledge. Rusney Castillo was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket and went 1 for 2 with two runs while starting in right field.

"We'd like to see him get a good chunk of playing time at the major league level and get comfortable with being here every day," general manager Ben Cherington said.

The Red Sox also brought in Wade Miley (8-8, 4.33) during the offseason, and like Samardzija he's been much better of late. The left-hander had a 5.07 ERA in his first 12 starts before recording a 3.33 mark in his last eight.

Miley gave up one run over six innings but continued to struggle with his command as he walked five in a 5-4 walk-off loss to Houston on Thursday. He's among the major league leaders with 44 bases on balls.

Miley didn't walk a batter and allowed two runs over seven innings to beat the White Sox 4-3 in his only matchup May 10, 2014, while with Arizona.






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