CHICAGO (AP) — The 2024 Crosstown Classic picked up right where the 2023 edition left off.
In the final game of last year’s series, at Wrigley Field, the Cubs rallied from a deficit to stun the White Sox on Christopher Morel’s three-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth inning.
It wasn’t a walk-off at Wrigley this time around, but it was another come-from-behind, last at-bat victory for the Cubs, who rallied from a five-run deficit late Tuesday night to win, 7-6, and extend the misery of the White Sox in the 2024 Crosstown Classic opener.
While the Cubs won for just the third time 12 games, the White Sox will now take a 12-game losing streak into Wednesday night’s matchup, which concludes the Wrigley Field portion of this season’s Crosstown Classic.
Happ comes through
Tuesday’s game included a 42-minute rain delay, but the fans who stayed through it at Wrigley late into the night were treated to a thrilling finish.
Ian Happ’s second double and third hit of the night drove in two runs to put the North Siders ahead in the bottom of the eighth inning. Happ lined one to the right-field corner off Jordan Leasure, driving in Cody Bellinger and Morel to erase a one-run White Sox lead.
“It was a good ballgame, and lots of back and forth,” Cubs first-year manager Craig Counsell said of his first Crosstown Classic experience. “We had some big hits, and we needed some big hits.
“It was a fun night, really, scoring late-inning runs like that. Some homers, Ian’s double in the eighth, obviously.”
Luis Robert Jr. launched a 448-foot solo shot to the left-center bleachers in his return to the lineup to break a tie in the seventh and put the White Sox ahead, 6-5. The All-Star center fielder added a single in his first game in nearly two months after being sidelined by a right hip flexor strain.
Robert, who hit 38 homers and drove in 80 runs in a breakout season in 2023, had been out since April 6.
“Robert gave us the lead right back,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “And we gave the lead back to them. Hard-fought ballgame.
“This one obviously got away from us. We’ve got to close these things out, we really do.”
The White Sox led 5-0 in the top of the fifth when the game was halted by rain. The South Siders still led, 5-1, going into the bottom of the sixth, when Morel and pinch-hitter Patrick Wisdom each hit two-run homers to erase the lead and tie the game at 5-5.
“When you’re going through a tough stretch, you’ve got to grind out every win,” Happ said. “It would have been really easy in that situation to kind of fold and not come back.”
Light-hitting Lenyn Sosa lined a two-run homer and Korey Lee doubled in two runs in the White Sox’s five-run rally in the fourth inning off Cubs starter Shota Imanaga.
Morel hit his team-leading 11th homer, but the third baseman also made an error fielding Paul DeJong’s chopper to set up the White Sox’s rally in the fourth.
Luke Little (2-1) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win. Hector Neris worked around a walk — and picked off pinch-runner Duke Ellis after he stole second — in the ninth for his eighth save.
White Sox starter Chris Flexen allowed one run on three hits in five innings, striking out four and walking none before the bullpen faltered. Leasure (0-1), the last of four White Sox relievers, allowed two runs on two hits in the eighth.
Imanaga was charged with five runs — just one earned — on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings in his 11th MLB start. The 30-year-old rookie left-hander from Japan struck out six and walked none as his ERA nudged up to 1.88.
Imanaga was relieved by Tyson Miller following the rain delay with one out in the top of the fifth.
The White Sox took a 5-0 lead in the fourth, four of those runs unearned.
With runners on first and second, Morel flubbed an attempt to backhand DeJong’s bouncer down the line. That allowed Andrew Vaughn to race home from second and open the scoring.
Lee lined a double to the left-field corner to make it 3-0. He came home on Sosa’s homer, his first this season and eighth of his career.
Trainer’s room
Cubs: RHP Colten Brewer (low back strain) was scheduled to make a rehab appearance at Triple-A-Iowa.
White Sox: The injury-plagued White Sox also placed OF Tommy Pham (left ankle sprain) and OF Dominic Fletcher (left shoulder strain) on the 10-day injured list retroactive to June 3. Chicago recalled outfielder Zach DeLoach from Charlotte and selected the contract of speedy outfielder Ellis from Double-A Birmingham.
Up next
The White Sox send RHP Erick Fedde (4-1, 3.12) to the mound against Cubs RHP Jameson Taillon (3-2, 2.84) on Wednesday night.
First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
The White Sox host their half of the 2024 Crosstown Classic on Aug. 9-10 at Guaranteed Rate Field, a Friday and Saturday night.
