Relief

In the bizarro world that is stadium politics in America, the Illinois General Assembly is scrambling to keep those lovable Munsters on this side of the state line with Indiana. The focus is on “tax relief.” Legislators know any kind of deal with the team risks charges of favoritism. When Virginia McCaskey was the face of the Bears, it was hard to say or think nasty things. With her son George in charge, it gets a whole lot easier. So, a billionaire handout is being disguised as “megaproject” legislation that will allow corporate entities to get tax breaks because, otherwise, local property taxes can be such a drain on quarterly profits. But fear not, little folks, you too will be offered some sort of tax relief. And how much will that cost? Correct me if I’m wrong, but lower taxes mean budget deficits if the affected taxing bodies don’t lower spending. Which Illinois communities are going to cut back on teachers and first responders? Which ones are going to rush to privatize municipal services or slash library hours? Of course, tax relief could be tied to some sort of millionaire’s tax, an idea of growing popularity with anyone not a millionaire. Question, though. Do you think George McCaskey is going throw his support behind any such effort?

Hear Me

I speak, and people listen, sometimes or only in my mind or not at all. Whatever. But White Sox players do seem to perform right after I call them out. Take Miguel Vargas (please), who homered and singled in yesterday’s series-clinching 7-4 win over the A’s (should’ve been a sweep, but, well, it’s the White Sox). Guess what I never realized until I slowed down Vargas’ swing, courtesy of TIVO? We have ourselves a disciple of Walt Hriniak, that’s what. Vargas may have no idea who the former Sox hitting coach is, but his top hand left the bat on his follow-through in every at-bat yesterday. Whatever works, if it works. Or consider Munetaka Murakami. Another game, another two strikeouts. Also a homerun for the third straight game, this one a real moon shot to right field. Murakami has his BA up to .208, with eight homers and sixteen RBIs. All I can say here is, more across the board, please. And let’s not forget Colson Montgomery. Another game, another strikeout, another…homer, his fifth of the year. Montgomery has his average at exactly .200. Sixty points more, and I’ll be happy, just like I am with his defense. Fifteen games started at short and four at third, 66 total chances without an error. More, please. Last and certainly not least (other than Sam Antonacci pinch-hitting a single), a tip of the cap to Noah Schultz, whom I didn’t criticize but who still bounced back nicely from his so-so first start. Schultz gave up a run, a hit and a walk in five innings of work while striking out six A’s. It was a dominating performance marred only by the 22-year old needing 82 pitches to get his first major-league win. Efficiency, young man, efficiency; pitches well outside the zone will only tire you out. There, I criticized him.

Not Good

A good baseball team builds on a second-inning, 5-0 lead. And it sure as all whatever doesn’t strand fourteen runners or go 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position or fail to score with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 11th inning or roll over and play dead the way the White Sox did yesterday against the A’s in an eleven-inning 7-6 loss. Then again, the White Sox aren’t a good team. And they don’t have a good manager, if managing means more than telling reporters after the game, “Some chase above the zone in big spots [Colson Montgomery and Everson Pereira both whiffing on high pitches out of the strike zone]. Whether guys were trying to do too much, I don’t think that was the case. [Then, what was the case?] That’s not really what I saw. [Then, what did you see?] Just weren’t able to make it happen.” [today’s online Trib] Just? You’re the manager, Vibes. It’s your job to make things happen, and your coaches’. If players aren’t producing, you diagnose the problem and fix it. If it can’t be fixed, you give other players a shot. Instead, Vibes and company, well, I haven’t a clue what they’re doing with Miguel Vargas and Sam Antonacci. After going 0-for4 yesterday, Vargas is batting an anemic .153, with two hits over his last 29 at-bats. He’s hitting off his front foot; lunging; taking a hand off his bat on his follow through. But he keeps playing. Either he’s not getting advice or not following the advice he’s getting. He needs to sit. Alas, so does Antonacci. After recording a hit in his first major-league at-bat, the 23-year old has gone 0-for-14. The good news is one strikeout in nineteen plate appearances. The bad news is contact softer than a Dreamsicle left out in the August sun. The kid is obviously pressing. What I want to know is, who’s helping him calm down? Vibes? I doubt he knows how.

If Just for One Game

If I didn’t know better, I’d think the White Sox took my complaints to heart yesterday and responded accordingly. Why not? Whatever the reason, Sox hitters woke up and pounded out fifteen hits in a 9-2 road win over the A’s...in Sacramento, of course. Now, let’s see if there’s any carryover. I hope so. Andrew Benintendi and Munetaka Murakami had three hits apiece while Colson Montgomery had two, along with Edgar Quero, Chase Meidroth and—wait for it—Luisangel Acuna. Murakami’s third hit was a monster grand slam in the seventh inning to dead center field, over a 50-foot high batter’s backdrop. It sure looked to go further than the announced 431 feet. But the real hero was starter Davis Martin, who picked up his third win with seven innings of one-run ball. How good was Martin? The 29-year old needed twelve pitches to get through the first two innings and 20 over the first three. For the game, the Sox best starter right now threw just 89 pitches. Compare that to A’s starter Aaron Civale, who got the hook after 4.2 innings and 103 pitches. By losing, the Mets and Royals have tied the Sox for worst record in baseball. Which of this lot will climb to the top of the pile? We’ll know soon enough.

Garbage, and not the Band

Three times yesterday, the White Sox had the lead over the Rays, and three times Tampa tied the game. Naturally, the third time proved a charm, with the Rays scoring three runs in the ninth, two with two out, to win 5-3 and sweep the series. What a load of…garbage. Where to start? Let’s start with the hitting, or lack thereof. What Casey Stengel once said about catchers and passed balls applies—in spirit—here. You don’t hit, you don’t win, and the Sox don’t hit. It was another day, another bunch of whiffs for Munetaka Murakami, as in three. Murakami has now struck out 26 times in 60 at-bats. Somewhere, Dave Nicholson shakes his head in disbelief. Signing Murakami was one of GM Chris Getz’s big offseason moves. The other was taking the money he saved from dumping Luis Robert Jr. and using it to sign Seranthony Dominguez to close. Now, not only does Getz’s team lack a centerfielder (how long until Luisangel Acuna gets sent down?), they don’t seem to have much of a closer, either. Dominguez fell behind 3-1 to Junior Caminero to start the ninth before delivering a sinker right in Caminero’s wheelhouse, thank you very much. Wait, there’s more. After getting an out, Dominguez gave up a single and a walk. Wait, there’s more. Then, he hit a batter. Wait, there’s more. Manager Vibes Venable brought in Lucas Sims, who apparently was so excited over striking out Jake Fraley he faced, he walked the next two. Game over. But, yes, you have to wait, because there’s more. After the game, Venable offered to reporters, “I think it was one of those [days] where he didn’t have his best stuff. He wasn’t able to command the ball.” [today’s Trib] Ya think? Now, tell me this, Vibes. Isn’t it the job of the manager and his coaches to get his closer ready, and, if he isn’t, to move quickly to minimize the damage? Only Vibes decided to go with an opener again, this time Jordan Leasure. Maybe one day Commissioner Rob Manfred will change the rules and allow a pitcher to return after being lifted, like in spring training. But, until then, you use a reliever to open, and you can’t bring him back in the ninth. Anthony Kay followed Leasure and went just 2.2 innings. Why didn’t Kay start? Maybe because this organization is clueless and content with garbage results. Right now, they have the worst record in baseball at 6-13 and are on a pace to lose 111 games, which would be the fourth straight season of 100-plus losses. Maybe they think a new stadium in the South Loop will fix everything. Yeah, that’s it. Only 10,128 showed up on a beautiful Thursday afternoon on account of location, not performance. What a load…

This is Progress?

Ask, and ye shall receive. Not really, but the White Sox did call up Sam Antonacci yesterday, and he responded by going 1-for-3 in his major-league debut, with a run scored in an otherwise dreadful 8-3 Sox loss to the Rays. Dreadful why? Because that one hit meant Antonacci ended up with a higher batting average in the lineup than Andrew Benintendi (.178); Munetaka Murakami (.179); Miguel Vargas (.155); and Colson Montgomery (.175). It’s hard to say which of this group looks worst, but Montgomery’s four strikeouts does stand out. Vargas at least makes contact. Did I mention Luisangel Acuna and his .170 BA? My bad, and Chris Getz’s for thinking Acuna is a major-league hitter. Nope. And neither is Tristan Peters, while we’re at it. But these guys continue to see playing time. Why? Speaking of head-scratching moves, Getz sent down Brandon Eisert and replaced him with fellow lefty Tyler Gilbert. Nothing says, “Thank you, Jesus, for this chance,” more than giving up four earned runs in 1.2 innings of work. Just kidding, about the Jesus part. But this team sure could use some divine intervention.

So-so

It could’ve been worse, it could’ve been better. In his big-league debut last night, lefthanded giant Noah Schultz went 4.1 innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on just three hits to the Rays in a losing effort. All four of the walks, though, scored as Tampa Bay coasted to an 8-5 win. Down 1-0 with runners on second and third and one out, Schultz fielded a bunt from Ben Williamson on an attempted suicide squeeze. At 6’10”, Schultz got to the ball in plenty of time for the out at home, only to throw it away. Take away the two runs that scored, and who knows? The good news is that Schultz won’t be going anywhere, as in back to Charlotte. He’ll see if he can steady his nerves in his second start, against the A’s or D-backs. The bad news is GM Chris Getz insists on staffing his bullpen with retreads; last night, Lucas Sims and Brandon Eisert let in four runs over 2.2 innings. Meanwhile, any number of promising pitchers await in Triple-A. Go figure. In another bit of Getz-second-guessing, I see he didn’t see fit to promote Sam Antonacci, a move that paid off in the short term. Instead of bringing up Antonacci, Getz activated Everson Pereira from the IL, and Pereira repaid the move by hitting a three-run homerun that put the Sox to within a run at 4-3 (see bad bullpen, above). Antonacci got two hits in his game, by the way.

Stuff

There’s stuff going on with the White Sox right now, but it’s tough to get a good read on the extent. What I do know is #2 prospect Noah Schultz, all 6’10” of him, will be making his major-league debut tonight against the Rays. That in itself is news. No waiting to make sure the 22-year old lefty is absolutely, 100-percent ready. Instead, both a leap of faith and an expression of confidence by the front office; how unlike the Sox. Rumor also has it that Sam Antonacci, all 5’11” of him, will be joining Schultz from Charlotte. Only this is where the new Sox are being just like the old Sox. No official word until around two hours before game time. With nothing better to do, I might as well dream, that Schulz will dazzle and Antonacci come through in the clutch. Perchance…

Back to the Future

By rallying yesterday to beat the Royals 6-5 on a wild pitch, the White Sox “improved” to 6-10 on the (thankfully, still young) season. Hmm, 6-10, sounds familiar. Back in 2023, then rookie manager Mickey Mouse posted the very same record. A year later, with Mouse working his magic, the Sox fell to 2-14 before Mouse was shown the door in August. His successor, Vibes Venable (Note: I will be using this moniker until Venable gets the team to ten games over .500), had a 4-12 record after sixteen games last season. You could say that progress is in the eyes of the beholder here. I’ll leave it to my daughter Clare to assess that progress. “At least they’re doing things,” she said yesterday. “It’s not like before, when they’d lost 80 games by July, and then said, ‘Ooh, what happened?’ Now, they’re doing stuff.” More on that “stuff” tomorrow.

No Change

Chase Meidroth, Munetaka Murakami and Colson Montgomery went a collective 0-for-11 in yesterday’s 2-0 White Sox loss in Kansas City. But, hey, the guys grinded away and actually doubled their hit total, from two on Friday to four. Even better was this nugget of wisdom offered by manager New-Mickey Venable. “As tough as it has been offensively, these guys remain positive,” Venable told reporters. “The vibe is good.” [today’s Tribune] And here I didn’t know teams make the postseason based on their vibe.

Help!

Davis Martin threw seven innings of two-run ball last night in Kansas City and still lost 2-0. Why? Because his team can’t hit. The “projects” went a collective 1-for-9 while everyone else managed 1-for-20 plus a walk. Not one batter in the Sox lineup is hitting better than Chase Meidroth’s .224, and I’m not convinced Meidroth is a major-league hitter, as evidenced by his three strikeouts last night in the leadoff spot. Speaking of strikeouts, take Munetaka Murakami and Colson Montgomery (please); Murakami went down flailing three times against KC pitching while Montgomery did it twice. Murakami is 8-for-45 with nineteen strikeouts vs. 9-for-48 with another nineteen strikeouts for Montgomery. If these guys don’t hit, who will? Meidroth? The Sox rank 29 out of 30 with a team BA of .196 and 29th in runs scored (43). The Astros lead the majors in runs with 85, by the way. I wouldn’t panic, but I would be concerned, very concerned.

One and Counting

The White Sox did something last night in Kansas City they haven’t done since April 4, 2024. Yup, beat the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. A shutout, no less. Sox 2 Royals 0. If nothing else, 5-8 tops 4-9. But how bad must the Royals be if an opponent with only six hitters in the lineup—again—beats them? Those six hitters generated all of five hits, two by catcher Edgar Quero and a run-scoring double off the bat of Colson Montgomery. As for the three, let’s call them “projects,” a single from Dustin Harris and a sacrifice fly from Luisangel Acuna, who now has two RBIs in 39 at-bats. Right now, the pitching both stinks and looks promising. Last night, Anthony Kay went 5.2 innings giving up three hits and two walks against six strikeouts, all good enough for Kay’s first win since June of 2021. (Not a good idea to hit two batters, though.) Manager New-Mickey Venable actually used Grant Taylor out of the pen for a change, and Taylor went 1.1 innings before yielding to Jordan Leasure, who did no damage over an inning, while Seranthony Dominguez managed not to blow the save despite a leadoff walk in the ninth. Did I mention Noah Schultz is 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA for Triple-A Charlotte, or that he has nineteen strikeouts in fourteen innings? Some stats are worth repeating.

Trite but True

With sports, you get what you put in. So, yet again yesterday afternoon, the White Sox fielded a lineup with just six hitters and ran out more journeyman relievers, turning yet another two-run lead into a 5-3 loss. Until they’d signed him last week, I’d never heard of 31-year old Lucas Sims, who picked up the loss (and a shoutout to Bryan “Who He?” Hudson for blowing the save). By the way, last night Noah Schultz ran his record to 3-0 for Charlotte. Speaking of just desserts, the Sky traded power forward Angel Reese to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for two first-round draft picks. If the Sky invested anything beyond a paycheck the two years they had Reese, I sure as heck missed it. At the risk of comparing forwards to guards, Reese is a whole different ballgame than Caitlin Clark. This is all speculation on my part, but I’m willing to bet that Clark has been a family enterprise since her mid-teens. She’s reserved but (sort of) approachable for the media, and she knows how to translate her talent into endorsement deals. The second she stepped on the court for the Fever, odds are she was backed by top-notch representation. Reese is more a one-person operation, which is where the Sky needed to step in with all sorts of support. The organization should’ve partnered with Reese in any and every endeavor, demonstrating their commitment to her on- and off-court success. From what I can see, they did absolutely nothing in that regard. The way things are going, don’t be surprised to see the announcement of a Sky/Sox partnership any day now. Because birds of a feather and dysfunctional organizations flock together.

Half a Roster

Right now, the White Sox look to be stuck in the teardown phase of their rebuild. Yesterday, they blew a 2-0 lead to lose 4-2 to the Orioles. By my count, they had six real hitters—and that’s ignoring early-season slumps—in the lineup while employing at most one major-league pitcher out of the six used, and that’s granting Jordan Leasure major-league status. Sorry, Jordan Hicks and his hittable 100-mph fastball don’t count, as evidenced by his 9.00 ERA. Wait, there’s more. Brooks Baldwin, who was expected to see plenty of action in the outfield, is out for the season with surgery on his right elbow. In his absence, we have the likes of Luisangel Acuna; Dustin Harris; Tristan Peters; and Derek Hill. How many RBIs has that quartet managed in eleven games? One. Still not done. Shane Smith started, threw 3.2 shutout innings but got sent down to Triple-A Charlotte. Why? Because he needed 99 pitches to record ten outs. It’s never a good look when you send down your Opening Day pitcher after three starts, but that’s your 2026 White Sox. The longer GM Chris Getz waits to promote the talent that he does have (starters Noah Schultz, Hagen Smith and Tanner McDougal along with newly-minted left fielder Sam Antonacci), the deeper the hole he digs for his team and the more he risks alienating the fanbase. But it’s been said many times, may ways. What do I know?

Bullseye

Holy Cow, Jerry Reinsdorf and son Michael actually fired Bulls’ v.p. of basketball operations’ Arturas Karnisovas and team GM Marc Eversley, and they only waited two years too long to do it! Who says old dogs can’t learn new tricks? It must’ve been excruciatingly hard for father and son to act. I mean, Karnisovas is the perfect Reinsdorf hire, both arrogant and tight-lipped, while Eversley spent his time in Chicago doing a spot-on impersonation of the Invisible Man. Has anyone seen him, let alone heard, from him? And a tip of the cap to now ex-Bull Jaden Ivey, whose social media attacks on Catholics and the LGBTQ community forced the front office to act. Too bad Karnisovas and Eversley didn’t feel the need to address the media regarding Ivey. Maybe that was the proverbial straw that broke the old regime. The last man standing here appears to be head coach Billy Donovan, and good for him. The HOFer is in the driver’s seat and should have no problem getting a job elsewhere, pros or college. If he stays around, it may be further proof that the old dogs on Madison Street finally have a clue about cleaning up the mess they let fester for way too long.

Sweep

Whenever a team with the third-lowest payroll in baseball sweeps the team with the fifth-highest, the little folk get to celebrate. White Sox 3 Blue Jays 0. It’s early, and that three-game sweep only gives the Sox a 4-5 record, but it sure beats the last three years. Right now, Davis Martin is pitching more like a #2 starter than a #4. The righthander threw six shutout innings on just 85 pitches to go 2-0 in the season. Some players labor to express themselves, Martin possesses the gift of gab (though not yesterday). A good season from him would mean an abundance of quotable lines. But it would be nice if the Sox started to field a lineup with nine established major-league hitters; yesterday, they got by with six. Tanner Murray (shortstop); Luisangel Acuna (centerfield); and Derek Hill (right field) don’t qualify, though Acuna looks he’ll get plenty of chances given that he can steal a base—four so far—when he gets on. Oh, but all the groundballs off his bat. At age 30, Hill is the quintessential journeyman while Murray is a callup for injured outfielder Everson Pereira (ankle). Off the play he made in the third inning with the bases loaded and two out, I hope the guy can hit because Murray ranged far to his left on a groundball by Addison Barger and bounced an accurate throw to first to beat a lefthand hitting Barger charging down the line. That said, I still want Colson Montgomery in there as my shortstop. Seven real hitters in the lineup is better than six.

Better

For better or worse, the White Sox have tied their fortunes to Munetaka Murakami. Yesterday, they got both, with the good outweighing the bad in a Sox 6-3 win over the visiting Blue Jays. Murakami butchered a groundball that led to a one-out, bases-loaded situation in the fourth inning. But Anthony Kay—who knew?—managed to wiggle out of it. Then came the sixth inning. Murakami absolutely crushed a ball off of reliever Brendon Little to dead center for a two-run homerun to give the Sox the lead for good. Two batters later, Colson Montgomery, in full feast-or-famine mode, launched a ball over the fence in right. Wait, there’s more. The Sox being the Sox, they had to give Toronto a chance to get back in the game, which they did by loading the bases with one out in the seventh. That’s when Murakami did his part in a sacrifice fly/double play. Nathan Lukes flied out to Tristan Peters in right, with a run scoring. Murakami then cut Peters’ throw and nailed the runner trying to advance from second to third. End of threat and pretty much end of ballgame. This was the second straight game Grant Taylor opened, pitching an inning. The logic here escapes me. Taylor is more valuable recording four outs late in the game than three in the first. But a win’s a win.

Smart Money, and Not

The White Sox won their home opener yesterday afternoon, topping the Blue Jays 5-4 in ten innings. Neither team’s big offseason free-agent signings did much to distinguish himself, starting with Toronto starter Dylan Cease. The onetime Sox enigma, signed to a seven-year deal worth $210 million, pitched just like he did on the South Side, which is to say not well enough. Cease needed 93 pitches to get through 4.1 innings. Against any other team, Cease would’ve exited on the short end of a score considerably worse than the 3-1 deficit he faced. And then we have Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami, he of the two-year $34 million contract. The question going into the season concerned the 26-year old slugger’s ability to adjust to MLB pitching. So far so good there. Fielding is the greater concern. We’re not talking range, arm or hands; it’s more the feel for playing first base. Twice in six games Murakami has had his foot off the bag taking a throw. Yesterday, it happened with two out in the tenth of a tied game, which allowed the go-ahead run to score. This is something that did not happen with Andrew Vaughn at first. But you take the win and appreciate Sean Burke’s six innings of one-run ball. On another team, Burke would’ve had a good shot at the win. With the Sox, Jordan Leasure could—and did—relieve him, and you know what that means, right? First two batters, a single and a homerun. Bye-bye two-run lead. But Tristan Peters, that alum of the Savannah Bananas, drove in the winning run in the bottom of the tenth, and all ended well. Dylan Cease? Not my concern anymore. Munetaka Murakami? We need to find him some foot-stretching exercises.

Why Bother?

I checked the Tribune hardcopy sports’ section this morning, all six pages of it, and guess what? No mention of the Chicago White Sox, a professional sports’ team that plays within the city limits. But there was space enough for an AP story on how Indiana quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza did Wednesday performing for pro scouts. Pretty good, apparently. And here I thought the Bears had themselves a quarterback. At 11:20 AM, I checked the Trib website to see if they posted a Sox story. Nope, nothing since Wednesday. Interesting priorities.

Teetering

Six games into the new season, and the White Sox are teetering on the brink. Nothing says “disaster” like your pitching staff giving up nine or more runs in four of five losses, including yesterday’s 10-0 embarrassment in Miami. What to do? I say, panic. I don’t know what GM Chris Getz was thinking when he assembled his pitching staff, but it wasn’t anything smart. He’s already cut ties with Jedixson Paez, a Rule 5 pickup from the Red Sox. If Shane Smith, another Rule 5 alum, doesn’t get his act together, he may be joining Paez before long. The team’s purported top starter got clobbered in his second start of the season, just like he did in his first. Against the Marlins, Smith yielded seven earned runs in three innings. Add up what he did against the Brewers, and Smith is 0-2 with a 19.29 ERA. If nothing else, that makes Sean Burke (6.75 ERA) and Erik Fedde (5.40 ERA) look good in comparison. While its parent club struggles, Triple-A Charlotte is off to a 4-1 start in large part because, yes, the Sox do have talent in the minors. The question, how long are they going to wait to bring up players? Sam Anronacci looks like a better fit than three outfielders I could name while Noah Schultz, Hagen Smith and Tanner McDougal could do just as well as three starting pitchers I could name. Then, again, what do I know? The Sox have lost 100+ games three seasons in a row without following a word of advice from yours truly.

Get Numb To It

Another spring day, another round of Bears’ stories in the papers and on TV. You have to get numb to it in order to survive. Outsized Munster coverage is the default setting for Chicago media, no matter how bad the team. The only way to change that is by other teams winning consistently. In Chicago? Not likely. Once upon a time, Michael Jordan and the Bulls grabbed attention away from the bumblers of the gridiron, but that happened in a century now 26 years past. Jordan is long retired and long gone, a 63-year old millionaire devoted to his NASCAR team. But Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner who ran Jordan and coach Phil Jackson out of town, is still around, finding yet new ways to humiliate an organization. The Bulls are in the midst of a public-relations nightmare because Reinsdorf and his son Michael hired Arturas Karnisovas to run the team six years ago, only Karnisovas is clueless. The latest example of his ineptitude involves now ex-Bull guard Jaden Ivey, who went off the deep end in a series of social media rants targeting anyone who wasn’t his kind of Christian. According to Joe Cowley of the Sun-Times, talking to Ivey was pretty much to face the kinds of questions best left to St. Peter. Bye-bye, Ivey, but not Karnisovas. How come? Because Jerry Reinsdorf does what he wants, no matter the cost to his White Sox or Bulls. In a different market, the attention would eventually shift to other teams. Alas, in Chicago it’s just an excuse to heap more coverage on a team that doesn’t deserve it in the least.