Other than finishing a series against the Minnesota Twins on May 1, the White Sox are facing their only American League Central foe of the month with their current four-game set against the Cleveland Guardians at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Sox entered Thursday's series opener 2-18 against the AL Central this season (1-8 at home), their worst start since the three-division format began in 1994.
The Cubs hit the road looking to win their first series in two weeks as they continue to get healthier. Center fielder Cody Bellinger delivered a punch in his return Tuesday with a three-hit game, including a home run, while right fielder Seiya Suzuki is expected to rejoin the Cubs in Pittsburgh and could be activated off the injured list Friday or Saturday. They need his bat, averaging only 2.83 runs in their last 12 games.
Chicago Cubs left-hander Richard Lovelady realized during the second half of last season that he needed to tweak his repertoire. Lovelady, then with the Oakland Athletics, saw the slider he threw to lefties and righties start to flatten in July and August. In the offseason, Lovelady continued to refine his slider and developed a splitter to help combat that, though he has found some success in five appearances with the Cubs and hasn't needed to use it.
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