KANSAS CITY - The White Sox punched their ticket to the postseason Thursday with a 9-1 win over the Royals, and the reaction after the final out matched the moment: calm on the field, chaos everywhere else.
John Rave’s groundout to second baseman Sam Antonacci ended it on a close play at first with Trevor Richards covering, sealing victory No. 82 and sending Chicago into a celebration that had plenty more energy than the box score suggested. The clubhouse turned loud fast, with players jumping, dousing one another with alcohol and singing along to whatever came through the speakers.
Shortstop Colson Montgomery said the moment was something the group had been chasing for a long time.
“You know how the past couple seasons have been with us. We always envisioned this,” Montgomery said.
“Deep down and everything like that, we all believed in ourselves, believed in each other. For this to come to fruition, it's awesome."
First baseman Munetaka Murakami had the same kind of stunned joy.
“Tremendous,” Murakami said via interpreter Kenzo Yagi. “This is unbelievable.”
The mood around the club matched the scene behind them. Assistant general manager Jin Wong described the group as tightly knit, and general manager Chris Getz pointed to the belief running through the room.
“I’ve said this before: This is like a fraternity that plays baseball together,” Wong told MLB.com. “How tight they are, how close they all are.
They play for each other. They play for the name on the front of the jerseys and not the back.”
“There are some emotional losses, some tough losses, and certainly from my perspective and you wonder,” Getz said. “But you know what?
It doesn’t really matter what I think because this group believes. They do.”
The playoff picture itself was simple enough: win and get in. The White Sox didn’t waste much time with the math. Antonacci singled on the second pitch he saw from Royals starter Randy Dobnak, and Chicago pushed across three runs in the first and three more in the second.
David Sandlin gave the White Sox exactly what they needed on the mound. He worked six innings, allowed only Salvador Perez’s 20th home run, struck out seven and did not walk a batter over 85 pitches. The outing may have helped his case for a postseason roster spot.
“It meant the world, especially to go against the team that drafted me and in a position to put us in the playoffs,” Sandlin said, who was selected by the Royals in the 11th round of the 2022 MLB Draft. “That’s all I could think about, going out there and succeeding for the team and the guys that have worked their tails off all year.”
Three relievers later, the mission was complete.
Afterward, the White Sox gathered on the field for photos while Getz addressed reporters. The organization now gets to enjoy the payoff, even if only briefly, because there is still another goal in front of them: the American League Central.
Chicago entered Thursday night a half-game behind the Guardians, pending Cleveland’s result against the Red Sox, though the White Sox hold the tiebreaker thanks to a 7-6 edge in the season series. The regular season finishes this weekend with three games against the Rockies at Rate Field, a team that brings 102 losses and three scheduled starting pitchers with ERAs over 5.30. Former White Sox standout Jose Quintana is slated to start Saturday.
Manager Will Venable said the group has earned the right to enjoy the night before turning back to work.
“We have important ballgames left to go, but right now it’s about celebrating and being happy for an incredible accomplishment," Venable said. “They know what this is about.
It comes with the expectation that this was going to happen. We’ll have a fun plane ride and then back to business tomorrow.”
Randal Grichuk said the White Sox feel equipped for what comes next.
“With off-days built in, our staff and our bullpen is good enough,” Grichuk said. “Our offense showed they can put up runs.
It’s once you get in, it’s who is playing hot. There’s somebody unexpected that takes a deep run.
We are built for it.”
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