The Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox received an unscheduled day off on Monday after Game 4 of their American League Division Series was postponed by rain. The Astros are taking full advantage of the situation, too, altering their pitching plans so that staff ace Lance McCullers Jr. will get the nod instead of José Urquidy, according to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle.
McCullers, who also started the series opener, will be pitching on full rest. In Game 1, he threw 6 2/3 shutout innings, punching out four batters and holding the White Sox to just four hits on 104 pitches. During the regular season, McCullers started 28 times and posted a 3.16 ERA (136 ERA+) and a 2.43 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 162 innings.
The Astros will enter Tuesday's game facing a simple scenario: win, and they'll advance to their fifth consecutive AL Championship Series. Lose, and the Astros will have one more opportunity, with that coming at home on Wednesday. Should the series necessitate a decisive Game 5, the Astros would likely start Framber Valdez.
The White Sox, for their part, remain committed to left-hander Carlos Rodón. On paper, that could prove to be a mistake. Rodón bled velocity late in the regular season as he battled shoulder fatigue. The White Sox could return to Game 1 starter Lance Lynn on full rest, the way the Astros are proceeding with McCullers, but it's possible Chicago has concerns about Lynn's years-long struggles against the Astros.
Dating back to 2018, Lynn has started nine times against the Astros, including in the postseason. He's accumulated a 6.36 ERA in those contests, and has yielded 13 home runs in 52 innings pitched. Those marks include Lynn's Game 1 start versus Houston, in which he surrendered five runs on six hits across 3 2/3 innings.