Tim Anderson led the way, as he often does. With the AL Central Division clincher there for the taking in the first game of a split doubleheader with the Indians Thursday, Anderson led it off with a home run.
Hours later, after the Sox walked off Progressive Field with a 7-2 victory and the franchise’s first division title since 2008 secured, general manager Rick Hahn hugged his All-Star shortstop.
“This is how we go,” Hahn told Anderson. “The energy, the focus. You could tell after the second at bat, he said ‘We’re ending it today’ and the rest of the team followed that lead. It was a beautiful thing.”
After Anderson homered in the first, he homered again in the second, a three-run shot to make it 6-0. Before that, Luis Robert and Eloy Jimenez also homered, and Robert singled off the wall to make it 7-0. All of the long balls came against righty Aaron Civale.
“That’s what we’ve worked for the whole season,” Anderson said. “We battled day in and day out and through a lot of tough injuries. To get this, it’s a good feeling. It’s a good start.”
The Sox (86-66) had nine regular season games left after the second game of the doubleheader, in which Anderson, Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada, Luis Robert and Eloy Jimenez sat out. The Sox have been a .500 team since the All-Star break but those five stars and Yasmani Grandal, the DH in Game 2, were in the lineup together for only the fifth time all season because of injuries.
“You lose a young, middle-of-the-order, Silver Slugger bat [Jimenez] at the end of spring training, which is a big gut punch, and you lose a Gold Glove, also middle-of-the-order bat from center field [Robert] a few weeks later, it would have been easy for this club to accept a sort of ‘woe is me’ mentality,” Hahn said. “But Tony and his coaches and the veteran leaders in that clubhouse, I can’t say enough about how great of a job they did remaining focused on, ‘OK, who’s here, who’s active and how are we going to win tonight?’ ’’
A Wild Card entry in the abbreviated 60-game 2020 season, the Sox are in the postseason in consecutive seasons for the first time. It was their second division title under 76-year-old manager Tony La Russa, who guided the 1983 team to the AL West title in 1983. It was La Russa’s 13th division title as manager and first since 2009 with the Cardinals.
“Even though I was kicked out of the family, I’ve always been a White Sox fan, as everybody knows,” La Russa said. “It’s like Fantasy Island. Winning never gets old. You appreciate everything everyone did to get here. It can get better if we play well in the Division Series.”
The Sox celebrated the win like almost any other victory, although La Russa had a bigger smile than usual. The overwhelming mood was this was one step.
Anderson took the first step Thursday.
“It means a lot,” Anderson said. “Being able to start the game off with a home run, that’s getting the guys into a different mode. And as you can see, the rest of the guys just followed up right behind that and we were able to get the win.”
NOTES: Michael Kopech started Game 2 and pitched two perfect innings, striking out four.
*Andrew Vaughn was reinstated from the injured list and played Game 2 at third base. Vaughn, a first baseman by trade, was converted to the outfield this season. Jace Fry was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte.
*Craig Kimbrel, still working through command issues, pitched a scoreless inning in Game 1 but benefited from a caught stealing courtesy catcher Yasmani Grandal. Kimbrel walked two batters and hit Bradley Zimmer on the foot with a breaking pitch.
