Levine: White Sox's Derek Holland Calls His Performance 'Embarrassing'

By Bruce Levine--

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Once a quality rotation member on a pair of pennant-winning Texas Rangers teams who also got off to a hot start this year, White Sox left-hander has fallen on hard times, with his performance dissipating markedly in the past couple months.

That continued Sunday, when the Holland was drilled for seven runs in two innings of work in his team's 14-6 loss to the Royals at Guaranteed Rate Field.

"It was just embarrassing," Holland said. "I wasn't able to find the strike zone early and when I did, I caught too much of the plate. You can not be in the middle of the plate or these guys are going to do what they did to me today."

The 30-year-old Holland had a 2.37 ERA at the end of May that has since ballooned to 5.68 in 23 starts this season. This included a 9.38 ERA in five July starts.

"It's frustrating," Holland sad. "We have been doing everything we can to get it right on the field. The thing I am happy about is being healthy. Now that I am past showing I am healthy, it is just a matter of executing. It's embarrassing to go out there and do the work with (pitching coach Don Cooper) in the bullpen and not do what I should be doing. It is so frustrating. I don't even know where to begin."

With the non-waiver trade deadline having passed, Holland is more or less relegated to pitching out the string for the rebuild White Sox as as they hold the second-worst record in baseball.

"It is hard," manager Rick Renteria said of watching Holland struggle. "We all try to help him through this. The reality is tomorrow is another day. He must go back to the drawing board and give himself an opportunity to have a good outing the next time out."

With young pitching talent having either already arrived (Reynaldo Lopez) or coming soon (Lucas Giolito likely this year, then more in 2018), the writing seems to already be on the wall for the free agent-to-be Holland's future with the team.

"He is not going out here to fail," Renteria said. "He wants to have success for himself and his teammates. He wears his feelings on his sleeve. He is a tremendous individual, you feel for him where he is at. He has a tremendous routine and work ethic. It just has not been working out to this point."

Renteria's words didn't come with a threatening tone but rather with a feeling of resignation. Time is running out for Holland to turn it around.

"These guys are out here busting their (tails) for me and for me not to do my job is frustrating," Holland said. "I have every right to be upset with myself, because these fans deserve better. I should be doing better. I am not performing the way I should be. It is frustrating, and as I said from the beginning of this interview, very embarrassing as well."

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.