The White Sox certainly aren’t off to a rip-roaring start, but most people still expect them to eventually get into a sustained groove.
The Cubs are off to a discouraging start, and can anyone think of a reason it won’t continue?
In this week’s “Polling Place” — your home for Sun-Times sports polls on Twitter — we asked voters which is likelier, that the Sox will win 90 games or the Cubs will lose 90 games.
“Sox 94-68, Cubs 52-110,” @GeorgeHoldcroft predicted.
We also asked which starter you’d pick for a must-win game: the Cubs’ Kyle Hendricks, the Sox’ Lucas Giolito or the Sox’ Dylan Cease.
“Gotta be honest,” @DanGoodwinIII wrote, “Cease is that dude. I would call on him.”
Finally, we asked in regard to the Bears, Blackhawks and Cubs: Which team is furthest from a championship?
“Is this a trick question?” @revot14 asked.
No tricks, just picks. On to the polls:
Poll No. 1: Which is likelier, that the White Sox will win 90 games or the Cubs will lose 90 games?
Time again for our weekly “Polling Place” questions. Let us hear from you! Selected comments will appear in Saturday's paper.
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 12, 2022
Poll No. 1: Which is likelier, that the White Sox will win 90 games or the Cubs will lose 90 games?
Upshot: The earlier 52-110 prediction for the Cubs seems overly dire, but this clearly is a losing team that was up against it in the talent department even before the injury list grew to outsized proportions. The Cubs will have to compete with all they’ve got — and then some — to stay within sniffing range of .500. Wait, did we say .500? We’re beginning to think we meant .400.
Poll No. 2: Must-win game tomorrow, and all three Chicago pitchers are on full rest. Who’s your starter?
Poll No. 2: Must-win game tomorrow, and all three Chicago pitchers are on full rest. Who’s your starter?
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 12, 2022
Upshot: Anyone else a bit surprised that young Cease got the nod? The veteran Giolito has, after all, been solid as a rock for a few years now. Hendricks has had an excellent career and has invaluable postseason experience. Cease — a former Cubs prospect — has so much talent and lately has been putting it all together. Cracked @WhiteSox_UK: “Dylan Cease would run for president and I would vote for him.”
Poll No. 3: Which team is furthest from a championship?
Poll No. 3: Which team is furthest from a championship?
— Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) May 12, 2022
Upshot: “The parity in this poll speaks volumes for the Chicago sports landscape,” according to @i_am_hoops, who makes, let’s face it, a sensible observation. But it’s the Hawks who win — sorry, lose — this one, and by a margin that could hardly be described as tight. Put it this way: It’s more like a 5-2 loss sealed by an empty netter than a 3-2 loss in an overtime shootout.
