Last week you might recall that the weekly recap touched on the fact that it’s not every week the White Sox hit 15 home runs. There are also going to be weeks where they only hit four — and this week was one of them. The record of the West Coast trip reflects this lack of long ball, at 2-4. For the first time this month, the South Siders have lost back-to-back series.
The good news is that this is the last trip west this season. The bad news is this small skid back to .500 is happening right before three intradivisional series, and the first time this season that there will be an encounter with a team in the AL Central other than the Kansas City Royals.
Funny enough, the pitching staff’s ERA (4.54) was lower this week than it was when we took a series from the Cubs. However, the pitching still allowed a lot of runs, while the offense hit .202.
The two wins that did occur this week were worth noting.
The first was a 2-1 victory in Seattle. Anthony Kay loaded the bases in the first inning with only one out. This allowed Patrick Wisdom to collect his first RBI of 2026 with a ground out. The game would remain at 1-0 until the top of the ninth inning. Munetaka Murakami led the inning off with a walk. Miguel Vargas was hit by a pitch to put the tying run in scoring position. With one out, Chase Meidroth and Andrew Benintendi hit back-to-back RBI singles:
For the first time all game, the White Sox took the lead. Grant Taylor brought the heat and closed the game out to earn the save and give Chicago the opportunity to take the series.
Kay really bounced back after running into trouble the first. He exited the game after 5 1/3 innings, throwing 57 of his 89 pitches for strikes, striking out five and walking three. In the month of May, Kay has not given up more than two runs and his ERA over four starts is just 2.11. (Over five starts in April, that same ERA was 6.64.) Here’s hoping this momentum continues, because his consistent starting presence is something this rotation needs.
When the Seattle leg of the road trip finished, it was time to head to San Francisco, where the result was exactly the same as it was in Oregon. An off-day on Thursday appeared to be what the doctor ordered when the White Sox exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning, the most runs they’ve scored in a single inning this season and the most without a home run since 2000. The two big scoring plays were doubles by Benintendi and Murakami:
Was it a coincidence the night the White Sox scored their most runs this week was also the night Davis Martin was also pitching? Probably not. The righthander is becoming notorious for winning the day after a South Side loss. Even though Martin would end up giving up a season-high four runs over 5 2/3 innings, he earned his seventh win of the season and help the Pale Hose avoid back-to-back losses:
The rest of the week left something to be desired. The lowlight occurred on Saturday, when the White Sox dropped multiple pop-ups in the sun. Through the top of the fifth, the game was tied … and then the bottom of the inning came around. Instead of me explaining, please enjoy some video evidence:
Later in the inning Mune would lose a Harrison Bader foul ball in the sun. The missed out opened the door for a Rafael Devers grand slam and nail in the coffin. I will not make you suffer through that clip, too. This game also happened to be started by Erik Fedde, who came in after a Bryan Hudson open. The veteran righty lasted just 3 1/3 innings, giving up eight of San Francisco’s 10 runs. Including Fedde, the bullpen had a 6.66 ERA over 25 innings of work this week.
Other poor pitching performances this week came from rookie starter Noah Schultz. The 6´10´´ starter opened the week in Seattle and closed the road trip out in San Francisco. In total, he worked 9 1/3 innings, gave up nine earned runs, struck out seven, and hit four batters. The positive is he has only walked one batter in the last 43 he has faced. The negative is offenses hitting .297 against the Southpaw.
The White Sox are headed back to 35th and Shields and will be back in action against the Minnesota Twins on Memorial Day at 1:10 p.m. CDT. It is a long flight back, and a short turnaround. I truly hope the plane ride home was one of rest.