CHICAGO _ The Chicago White Sox looked like the rusty team coming off a long layoff in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Lucas Giolito allowed four runs in the first inning as the Sox lost to the Cardinals, 5-1, at Guaranteed Rate Field.
The Cardinals had not played since July 29 after a rash of positive COVID-19 tests among players and staff.
The Cardinals jumped on Giolito early. He surrendered four hits, a walk and hit two batters in the first inning. He hit Tyler O'Neill to load the bases, then hit Matt Carpenter on the next pitch to bring in Kolten Wong with the game's first run.
Dexter Fowler drove in two with a single, and Andrew Knizner's RBI single made it 4-0 in the first.
Giolito allowed five runs _ four earned _ on six hits with five strikeouts and two walks in five innings.
Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright and two relievers limited the Sox to three hits in the seven-inning game. Sox second baseman Danny Mendick went 2 for 2 with one run.
Saturday marked the first time the Sox participated in a seven-inning doubleheader, one of the adjustments Major League Baseball made for the pandemic-shortened season.
