The game was played on Friday, but the Chicago White Sox certainly made it look like a “Throwback Thursday” in an 8-6 loss in the opening game of their series with the Philadelphia Phillies.
It started out well for the White Sox, as they struck first in the second inning thanks to a two-out rally. It was started by a Sam Antonacci hit-by-pitch and capped off with a Tristan Peters RBI single to give the South Siders a two-run lead. Unfortunately, after that the White Sox — most notably Anthony Kay
and Miguel Vargas — looked more like their 2025 selves than the team that has been one of the surprises in the MLB this spring.
Kay came into the game off of a strong May campaign that saw him sport a 4-0 record with a 1.95 ERA in six starts. With two of those efforts coming against the Seattle Mariners and another against the San Diego Padres, it wasn’t just a case of Kay feasting on weak opponents. Unfortunately, he reverted back to who he has been most of his career, as a pitcher with a career ERA over five — and one who struggles with command.
Kay couldn’t throw strikes when it mattered in the bottom of the second, and he didn’t get much help defensively, either. With runners on the corners and one out in a tie ball game, a chopper to Vargas at first had out written all over it. Instead of making the easy play at first, Vargas tried to gun out Adolis García at home, but a poorly-thrown ball allowed everyone to reach safely:
That mistake would cost the White Sox dearly, as an Alec Bohm double with two outs scored two runs that otherwise wouldn’t have crossed the plate.
Unfortunately the mistakes didn’t stop there, as after a Randal Grichuk homer and a Vargas walk, Vargas was caught stealing to turn momentum back in favor of the Phillies. Kay kept making mistakes on his pitch locations but was able to get away with it until García finally made him pay, with his own solo shot in the fourth to stretch the lead to three runs.
To Chicago’s credit, they continued to show the same grit and fight that they have all season. Even after falling behind 6-3 and Kay clearly not having his best stuff, they refused to give up. Grichuk and Derek Hill both knocked out solo homers to keep the game close before Colson Montgomery muscled a broken-bat RBI single to tie the game at six apiece. Unfortunately, the bullpen, mainly Bryan Hudson, looked like the bullpen of old and imploded in the seventh inning. The bases were loaded before Hudson even registered an out, and a sacrifice fly brought a run in. While the lefty was getting squeezed on some good-looking pitches painting the inside corner, it was still a rough outing for a guy who has been clutch all season.
Seranthony Domínguez relieved Hudson and was the next White Sox player to make a critical error. He walked JT Realmuto before getting Brandon Marsh into an 0-2 count. Just one strike away from limiting the damage to a run, he chunked a splitter in the dirt for a wild pitch and a second run scored. Domínguez was able to get Marsh down on strikes on the next pitch, but further damage had been done.
The White Sox posted one last threat in the eighth, but with two on and no outs Rikuu Nishida hit a line drive right at pitcher Brad Keller who made a great reaction catch and threw to second for the double play.
The White Sox would not see another base runner from there on out. Between Vargas’ fielder’s choice, Hudson’s meltdown, and Domínguez’s wild pitch, the South Siders gave Philadelphia too much help, and they paid the price for it. Fortunately, the White Sox still have a chance to win the series as the teams meet two more times.
