Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Though Gavin Floyd ended up with a hard-luck no-decision on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins, it was just the type of start that the Chicago White Sox wanted to see from him.
No, it didn’t carry the team to a win as the Sox fell 5-3 to a 7-11 record, but that’s of no fault of the righty-hander, who out-dueled Scott Diamond through six solid innings and was even in line for the win before his bullpen blew it for him.
Giving up just one run on three hits and three walks, this was an outing that was all about getting away from bad habits. In Floyd’s case, it was the long ball: the 30-year old had served up homers in each of his last two starts that led to early showers, and it was something that he needed to reel back before the things really got away from him.
Fortunately, the relatively punchless Twins (nine home runs, second-last in MLB) were just the antidote for the problem.
Floyd cruised through the first five innings, facing just two over the minimum and did not allow a runner past first base. However, it was another bad habit — walks — that got the No. 3 pitcher into his only real trouble of the day, as he walked Joe Mauer on four pitches to load the bases, and followed that up two batters later with a five-pitch walk to Justin Morneau to give up his only run.
These lapses in control had cost him before (this was his third straight start with three walks), but the righty recovered this time, ending the threat with a strikeout.
In fact, that single K of Ryan Doumit could well have encapsulated Floyd’s outing: a pitcher rebounding from adversity after giving up nine combined runs in his last two outings and being unable to escape the sixth in either.
He didn’t quite get his first win; but hey, look on the bright side — he also avoided a loss for the first time in 2013.
