ATLANTA – Neither White Sox rookie right-hander Dylan Cease or manager Rick Renteria were revealing Friday about how Cease might be tipping his pitches -- as Renteria offered after Cease was roughed up for eight runs on 10 hits by the Twins in two-plus innings Thursday.
“I’d rather not tell you the signs I’m looking for but we’re going to look at it and see if there is anything there with our guy,” Renteria said.
Renteria seemed to retreat a little from the notion that tipping was the primary cause of Cease’s woes.
“A lot of times it’s just guys missing their location,” Renteria said.
Cease’s velocity and the break on his curve are as good as gets, so that’s not the issue. He and Sox pitching coaches Don Cooper and Curt Hasler and Renteria are reviewing video to see if anything can be detected.
“We’ve been looking at it, so we’ll continue with that,” Cease said Friday. “It’s just something I’m going to have to keep looking at.”
Cease, the Sox’ top pitching prospect next to the rehabbing Michael Kopech, will take a 3-7 record and 6.92 ERA into his next start. He has 53 strikeouts in 52 innings over 10 starts.
“It’s encouraging that my stuff has been for the most part where it needs to be,” he said. “Now I just have to use it better.”
At Class AAA Charlotte this season, Cease said his main issue was his fastball cutting too much.
“I’ve straightened that out for the most part,” he said. “It’s just something I’m going to have to keep working on.”
Lopez feeling stronger
Right-hander Reynaldo Lopez says he feels strong heading into September, and the speed gun backs it up.
“My arm feels good, my body feels good,” said Lopez, who will oppose Braves left-hander Dallas Keuchel Saturday. “Mentally and physically I am good.”
In five August starts including one with flu-like symptoms and dehydration issues over five innings of no-hit ball against the Rangers Sunday, Lopez’ four-seam fastball averaged 96.92 per Brooks Baseball, his best average for a month in three seasons.
“Some guys go through a time, sometimes toward the end of the season when the velocity goes down,” Lopez said. “My arm is a weird arm because I feel good at the beginning of the season, and then in the second half I feel stronger than in the first half.”
Lopez is 4-3 with a 2.82 ERA over nine starts in the second half of the season.
September callups
Rosters can be expanded as soon as Sunday but the timing of some Sox September callups could be affected by Class AAA Charlotte’s possible postseason play.
“The conversations have been kind of limited,” Renteria said. “We’re allowing that Charlotte club fighting for a wild card spot to play itself out and determine who we’ll bring. I’m sure it won’t be a large contingent of players. But the ones we bring up will get an opportunity to play. We don’t want to bring guys up and have them sit on the bench.”
Among the possibilities: Catcher Zack Collins, righthanders Carson Fulmer, Jose Ruiz and Dylan Covey, lefthanders Manny Banuelos and infielder Danny Mendick.
