The Chicago White Sox have spent the season showing they can survive a lot. What they can’t keep doing is handing games away.
They’ve dropped three of their last four, and on its own that kind of stretch doesn’t scream disaster over a 162-game schedule. The problem is that each of those losses felt there for the taking, and all of them came at home. That’s the part that should bother the Sox.
The first one was the opener against the Houston Astros, when Chicago raced out to a 5-0 lead with staff ace Davis Martin on the mound. Then the sixth inning blew the whole thing open.
Yordan Alvarez led off with a single, Martin hit a batter after it initially looked like the ball had struck the bat for a double-play, and Houston challenged successfully. Martin loaded the bases and gave up a run before he was pulled, then Christian Walker doubled and cleared the bases.
Cam Smith followed with a homer, and Houston had a lead it never gave back.
That inning was the turning point, but the Sox didn’t help themselves by repeatedly popping balls up. It looked like they were trying to hit five-run homers every time they came to the plate.
Saturday brought another missed opportunity. A single got past White Sox right fielder Braden Montgomery and rolled into a bases-clearing play with the bases loaded again in the sixth, and Houston rode that moment to a 4-1 win.
Then came Monday’s loss to the New York Yankees, when Chicago gave away a 3-0 lead before falling 9-5. Rookie starter Noah Schultz had been cruising before running into trouble in the fourth and issuing two walks.
Edgar Quero was caught flat-footed as Jazz Chisholm stole third without a challenge. Later, Justin Jirschele waved Colson Montgomery home with the tying run in play, even though Montgomery has been dealing with minor injuries and couldn’t run at full speed.
The Yankees made the relay cleanly and cut him down at the plate. Add in a few errors, and the whole thing turned into a mess.
None of that means the White Sox are suddenly sliding back into the habits of the previous three seasons. They’ve already shown this year that they can answer bad stretches.
After two heartbreaking losses in Cleveland, they bounced back. They also came out of the All-Star break strong after being swept at home by the Boston Red Sox.
Earlier in the season, they stayed around .500 even with slugger Munetaka Murakami out injured. They’ve also managed to stay competitive despite getting limited time from catcher Kyle Teel, who has battled injuries all year.
This is still a young roster, too, and that matters. Young teams make mistakes. They miss details veterans usually handle without thinking twice.
But the bigger picture is impossible to ignore. The Sox have played themselves into real playoff contention, and if they want to finish the job, the time to act like it is now.
Some will point to next year as the real window, but next year is never promised. In this case, labor strife could mean there isn’t a next year in the way people expect.
And there’s no guarantee the American League will be this open again.
If Chicago wants a playoff appearance, if it wants to win a series or two once it gets there, or even make a run at the title, it has to clean up the baseball.
The Sox have gotten by this season by outslugging mistakes, and at times by outpitching them. That margin is shrinking.
The mental lapses have to go. The youthful errors have to go.
What has to replace them is smart, aggressive baseball.
Manager Will Venable seems like the right kind of voice for that job. He may be a laid-back dude players love, but by all accounts, he won’t tolerate sloppiness.
Even if Venable and his staff get that part fixed, there are still real questions to answer, especially with pitching from the rotation and bullpen and with catching depth while Teel is out. Some of that could be addressed at the trade deadline. But playing cleaner baseball has to come from inside the room if the White Sox want to do anything meaningful in October.
In Other News...
White Sox Deadline Buzz With Mets Could Reveal How Serious Chris Getz Is
The White Sox appear ready to spend the next few days testing how far their deadline plans can go, and the early signs point to a front office trying to improve without stripping down the farm system. Chicago has made starting pitching the main priority as it pushes for a playoff spot, but catching has also emerged as a real need after Kyle Teels latest injury and uneven production from Edgar Quero and Drew Romo.
Chris Getzs approach is starting to take shape in a way that could define the rest of the summer. The Sox have drawn a line on their top 10 prospects, yet they are open to taking on a contract if it helps them land the pitching they want, which is the kind of deadline posture that can lead to a useful upgrade if the right deal surfaces. The Mets have come up in those catcher conversations, and the next move will say plenty about how aggressively Chicago intends to attack this market. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Linked To A Starter Who Could Change Everything
The search for pitching help at the deadline has put the White Sox in the mix for a name that would carry more than a short-term fix. Los Angeles Angels left-hander Reid Detmers has drawn trade interest after returning to the rotation and pitching well this season, and Chicago is among the clubs keeping tabs as the Angels weigh whether to move controllable players and restock their farm system.
For the Sox, the appeal is obvious. Sean Burke and Davis Martin have provided strong stretches, but the rotation still feels thin and unstable overall, which makes a pitcher with club control through 2028 especially attractive. The question now is whether Chicago is willing to pay the kind of price that could pry away a starter the Angels may view as a long-term piece, and that part of the market figures to get interesting fast. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Fans May Need To Rethink Luisangel Acuna
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The change has mattered. Acuna has looked far more comfortable on the infield, and his recent play has turned him into a useful utility piece rather than just a name from a big trade. With Jacob Gonzalez now gone, he is also the only true backup infielder on the roster, which gives the White Sox a decision to make about whether this is the role that sticks or whether his value might be even higher somewhere else. [Read more 🡒]