Jose Quintana threw 5 23 fantastic innings Monday afternoon in Cleveland, cleaning up for the struggling Philip Humber. After Humber allowed eight runs on nine hits in 2 13 innings, Quintana allowed no runs and one hit in his relief appearance, keeping the White Sox bullpen fresh for Game 2 and the rest of the series against the Indians. The 5 23 scoreless innings were the most by a White Sox pitcher making his MLB debut since Jack McDowell threw seven shutout frames in 1987.
But Quintana was added to the White Sox roster as the 26th man for a doubleheader, a provision allowed under MLB's new CBA. After Monday's double-dip finale, Quintana was returned to Birmingham, meaning Eric Stults will stay with the White Sox for the time being.
Stults was shaky in six innings of work, issuing four walks with four hits. But he allowed only two runs with four strikeouts while doing a great job keeping the ball on the ground (seven groundouts, one flyout). So, for the time being, he appears to have a chance to win the fifth starter role with the White Sox.