Chicago White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel walked Manuel Margot on four pitches to begin the eighth inning Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.
Kevin Kiermaier came to bat representing the tying run. Kimbrel threw three straight balls before tossing his first strike of the inning. He got Kiermaier to line out to second baseman César Hernández on the next pitch.
Kimbrel struck out Mike Zunino, but that was the last batter he faced as the Sox made a pitching change. It was a decision manager Tony La Russa regretted, not because it didn’t work out but because of the message he thought it sent Kimbrel.
The Rays scored three runs in the inning. But even after the Sox rallied to win 7-5 in 11 innings, the decision to pull Kimbrel remained on La Russa’s mind.
“It was a win that I didn’t enjoy because he got the wrong message about respect and confidence,” La Russa reiterated Saturday. “We were together in Boston (in 2018), and I know how great he is.”
La Russa and Kimbrel discussed the move. The reliever took the conversation as a positive.
“We’ve spoken since the other day and gotten things talked out,” Kimbrel said Sunday. “And I told him how I felt, and he told me how he felt. We move on and get ready to play the next day. That’s part of this game. There are going to be things that happen that sometimes you agree with or disagree with. But if you can talk about it after the fact and get things worked out, that’s always a positive.
“I would take it as a positive because we talked, got things worked out and move forward. I’m not going to be upset and carry it over into my next outing or the next day or anything like that. We had a great conversation.”
The Sox acquired the All-Star, one of the game’s top closers, from the Chicago Cubs in a huge move at the July 30 trade deadline.
“That’s what we talked about is obviously this transition and doing what we need to do to win,” Kimbrel said.
His arrival, one day after the Sox added reliever Ryan Tepera in another trade with the Cubs, gave a bullpen that already included All-Star closer Liam Hendriks more depth.
“It’s a great group of guys,” Kimbrel said. “They’re a fun group to be around and we’re winning, so that always makes it a lot easier.”
Kimbrel has a 5.40 ERA with 12 strikeouts in nine appearances with the Sox.
“Some of the things I’ve been getting beat with is a little bit of command issues and the way I’ve been spinning my fastball,” Kimbrel said. “But luckily I’ve been able to use my curveball really effectively in those outings until I find my fastball.”
He has allowed five runs on eight hits in 8? innings.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in baseball with a great track record,” Sox pitching coach Ethan Katz said Saturday. “He’s pitching in high-leverage situations. He’s going to be fine. He’s one of our main guys. We got him for a reason. He’s throwing the ball fine. He’s going to be a big contributor down the road for us and down the stretch.”
Kimbrel has pitched in the eighth inning in eight of the nine outings.
“There definitely is a difference, but in the situation we’re in, that’s not something that can actually be a factor that we talk about,” Kimbrel said. “Still got to go out there, no matter what inning it is, no matter how many people are in the seats or how much energy is in the stadium. Still got to get your outs. Obviously I’ve had some rough ones since I got traded over, but I’ve had good ones too. It’s just getting in a good rhythm.”
One of the standout appearances came Aug. 16 against the Oakland Athletics, when he struck out Matt Chapman and Josh Harrison with runners on second and third in the eighth to preserve a two-run lead.
The Sox began the final part of a stretch of series against fellow playoff contenders Monday with the first of four against the Blue Jays in Toronto. The Sox split the first 10 in the string against the New York Yankees (1-2), A’s (3-1) and Rays (1-2).
Kimbrel has plenty of postseason experience, having pitched in 20 playoff games for the Atlanta Braves, Red Sox and Cubs. He said the key during this part of the season is making sure “mechanically and physically that things are where they need to be.”
“August is probably the toughest part, toughest stretch of the season,” he said. “You hear it a lot: ‘Hey, just get through August, and when we get to September, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.’ As we finish up August and into September, we’ve just got to finish up playing well.
“Once we get to September, like I said, we’ll be able to see the end. To see that makes things a lot easier.”
The goal every season is to be ready to contribute in October.
“That’s the motivating thing when I show up in spring training,” Kimbrel said.
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