José Urquidy gave the White Sox exactly what they needed in the middle innings, Braden Montgomery supplied the finishing touch, and Chicago left Wrigley Field with a 3-0 win over the Cubs on Wednesday.
Urquidy worked six clean innings out of long relief, allowing just two hits while striking out eight and walking none. The rookie Montgomery chipped in two hits and drove in two runs, including a two-run double in the eighth that nicked off Cubs first baseman Michael Busch’s glove and helped close the door on the Crosstown finale.
The White Sox got on the board first in the sixth when Andrew Benintendi broke a scoreless game with an RBI single. That hit snapped a rough stretch for Chicago, which had dropped a pair of walk-off decisions before finally ending an eight-game losing streak at Wrigley Field that dated to August 2023.
Chicago also walked away with a split of the 2026 season series, 3-3. The Cubs still hold the edge in the all-time interleague matchup, 80-78.
The pitching setup was strong from the start. Opener Sean Newcomb threw two hitless innings, and Urquidy (2-1) took over in the third before settling in and rolling through the Cubs lineup. Grant Taylor finished it off in the ninth for his seventh save, sealing a two-hitter.
Clay Holmes (5-6) was solid again for the Cubs in his second straight start and third overall since arriving from the Mets at the trade deadline. He gave up one run on six hits over 5 1/3 innings, with two walks.
The Cubs never did much against the White Sox staff. No. 9 hitter Tyrone Taylor, also acquired from the Mets in the Holmes deal, accounted for both Chicago hits. He doubled to start the sixth, but got thrown out trying to take third on Pete Crow-Armstrong’s fly to right.
Defensively, the White Sox got a big play from Sam Antonacci in left field, where he leaped to snag Alex Bregman’s drive against the ivy for the first out of the seventh and keep the White Sox ahead 1-0.
The White Sox padded the lead in the eighth against Ryan Rolison. Miguel Vargas drew a walk, then pinch-hitter Randal Grichuk and Montgomery followed with doubles to stretch the margin to 3-0.
Next up, the White Sox return home to face Atlanta on Thursday in a makeup of a June 11 rainout, with left-hander Anthony Kay (9-5, 4.01 ERA) set to oppose Braves right-hander Grant Holmes (7-5, 3.82) at Rate Field. The Cubs head to Seattle on Friday, with starters not yet announced.
In Other News...
Huascar Brazobn Is Already Giving The White Sox A Bullpen Problem
The White Soxs latest roster shuffle brought in four fresh names, but not every addition came with the same sense of clarity. Luis Castillo, Brenton Doyle and Joey Bart each seem to fit a role or at least a path to one, while Huascar Brazobn has already complicated things in the bullpen. Chicago was intrigued enough to bring him aboard, but the early returns have not matched the relief profile he built with the Mets.
Brazobns results in Chicago have looked a lot shakier than the version the White Sox were hoping to get, with the kind of inconsistency that can turn a low-key bullpen move into a real roster question. The larger concern is whether this is just a rough stretch or the start of a familiar seasonal slide, because if the struggle keeps going, Chicago has the flexibility to make a move and reset the situation before it becomes a bigger problem. [Read more 🡒]
Cubs Starter's Early Exit Changed Everything Against The White Sox
Kevin Gausmans afternoon against the White Sox took a strange turn once his command started to wobble, and the Cubs were suddenly forced to navigate the rest of the game without the starter they had planned around. What had been a routine division matchup shifted when Gausman began dealing with discomfort, and the ripple effect was immediate for both the Cubs and the White Sox on a day that had already been moving at a tense pace.
The injury was traced to a cramp that affected his glove hand, something the Cubs and Gausman later explained after he was unable to keep going at full capacity. The issue surfaced during the middle innings and lingered long enough to alter the shape of the outing, leaving Chicago to piece together the rest of the game while wondering how much the early departure changed the outcome. [Read more 🡒]
Two White Sox Players Just Added Fuel To A Cubs MVP Debate
Pete Crow-Armstrong has become one of the louder names in the National League MVP conversation, and the debate only got a little more interesting when ESPNs Jesse Rogers checked in with players around the game. In Rogers sample, 15 of 21 players backed the Cubs outfielder over Shohei Ohtani, a sign of how much traction Crow-Armstrongs season has gained even with a superstar like Ohtani sitting on the other side of the argument.
Among the voices Rogers gathered were two from across town, White Sox pitcher Sean Burke and catcher Drew Romo, who both landed on Ohtani. Their reasoning pointed back to the two-way impact Ohtani brought earlier in the season, a reminder that the MVP race is not being judged only by what has happened lately at the plate. Crow-Armstrongs recent offensive push has kept the Cubs firmly in the conversation, but the split among players shows just how much weight Ohtanis unique season still carries. [Read more 🡒]