Once again, the White Sox proved persistent, resilient and … just plain … good, knocking off Detroit, 2-1, sweeping the series and creeping to within a game of first place in the AL Central.
We’re all old enough to remember that most national writers tabbed the White Sox for last place once again in the division, generously allowing that the club would avoid a fourth straight 100-loss season. Meanwhile, Detroit was a near-consensus pick to run away with the division. Some prognosticators, certainly
not someone as bright as your current recapper, saw the Tigers as the top team in the American League and a possible pennant-winner.
That is a distant memory now, all of two months ago, as Detroit’s loss today buries them further in the cellar of both the ALC and the American League at large; the Bengals in fact are tied with the Colorado Rockies for worst in the majors.
The White Sox, meanwhile, keep chugging along, five games better than .500 for the first time since 2022. With a White Sox win at Minny tomorrow, idle Cleveland can merely nibble its nails as the Good Guys creep to within a half-game of the top spot. (For those who care of such things Crosstown, the Cubs are getting mauled early in St. Louis, and a loss drops them below the White Sox in the standings. Who woulda thunk that one all of [checks calendar, rubs eyes, checks the year on the calendar] TWO WEEKS ago, when the ivy bumblers were the swellest thing since pee troughs and the White Sox were just a wannabe 70-win team?)
As for today’s contest, well this is a late and last-minute filler recap, so pardon the lack of deets. Detroit sprung ahead before fannies got settled in seats, a single-double combo with one out in the first putting Sean Burke again behind early.
Burke, natch, shook it off as all Sox starters have been doing for much of the season, turning in a tidy 5 1/3 innings with just one more hit allowed in his outing. And while we are fond of (or addicted to) dogging our bullpen, sorry folks but the reliever corps has been nothing but splendid. Missing Mike Vasil, losing Jordan Leasure’s solid 2025 finish, getting a non-closer performance so far from Seranthony Domínguez, this group has been nails. Grant Taylor, Bryan Hudson and Sean Newcomb have been murderously good cogs in the machine, and at best we would have pegged Taylor as such.
Today, it was Chris Murphy (subbing up for Tyler Gilbert on emergency family leave), Brandon Eisert, Hudson and Tyler Davis (first career save) covering the final 14 outs of the game, and doing it with aplomb.
Offensively it wasn’t Chicago’s most buff effort, but when the pitching suffocates the opponent to one run, you don’t gotta do much. And the White Sox didn’t gotta do much today, with a short burst in the seventh that covered the one-run deficit.
First, Colson Montgomery homered again, tying the score at one and creating an uh-oh moment for the feeble Tigs and their hapless coward manager:
Providing the eventual winning margin was how-the-hell-is-he-on-pace-for-5-WAR Tristan Peters, doinking a grounder to the left side that plated Chase Meidroth:
(In-between the four straight singles that provided the winner came Jacob Gonzalez’s first career hit, as part of a 1-for-3 day and flawless play at first base:
That’s it! Just a simple, humdrum win for the White Sox. It is bizarre, after the setback .500 season of 2022 and then the sewer play that proceeded over the next three seasons, that the White Sox are a team now to be reckoned with. But reckoned with they must be. And if precious Cleveland isn’t careful, the South Siders are gonna sneak up and pop them in the jaw like most of the majors has experienced from them so far in 2026.
