Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today’s games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Today's edition is brought to you by Brian Murphy.
There are remarkable turnarounds, and there is what the 2026 White Sox are doing right now.
Chicago defeated old friend Chris Sale and the Braves on Wednesday night to take the first two games of its series against the team with the best record in baseball and climb into first place in the AL Central.
To say the White Sox have gone from worst to first kind of undersells their rapid ascent. Lest we forget that just two years ago, the South Siders were in the midst of what was, objectively, the losingest season in the Modern Era (since 1900) in terms of both losses (121) and win-loss percentage (.248). They got outscored by 306 runs.
They achieved a 19-win improvement last season, but they don’t hang banners for going 60-102.
However, there might be a divisional title in the White Sox future if they keep swinging it as well as they have. Of the 11 position players who received at least 200 plate appearances on that 2024 squad, only one (Andrew Benintendi) is a part of the current roster. That overhaul makes sense considering that ‘24 team was last in MLB in runs scored (507) and home runs (133).
And now? Good luck to opposing pitchers when they have to travel to Rate Field. The White Sox enter Thursday’s series finale against Atlanta (7:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV) with the fourth-most homers (91) and the fifth-best OPS (.739) in the Majors. They then welcome the Dodgers for a three-game weekend set in Chicago, where the club’s 22-11 home record -- tied with the Braves for the second-best mark in MLB -- is largely due to a cast of young, potent bats.
Second-year shortstop Colson Montgomery, who hit 21 home runs in 71 games as a rookie, has 16 homers through 64 games this year. That’s tied with third baseman Miguel Vargas, whose breakout campaign has him looking every bit like an All-Star. Japanese sensation Munetaka Murakami is still tied for second in the AL with 20 dingers even though he hasn’t played this month due to a right hamstring strain.
Rookie Sam Antonacci (.387 on-base percentage) has been a pest at the top of the lineup. Outfielder Tristan Peters, who was acquired for cash from the Rays during the winter, has an OPS better than 1.000 across his previous 22 games. Outfielder Braden Montgomery, MLB’s No. 21 overall prospect, followed up his improbable debut from Tuesday with two more hits in Wednesday’s victory. And besides missing Murakami, the White Sox have also been without catcher Kyle Teel (hamstring strain/knee sprain) for the entire season, and he had a 121 OPS+ last year.
This offense is for real. The pitching? It could use some work, although starter Davis Martin has evolved into an ace and was stellar again last night.
But maybe the first-place White Sox will be buyers at this season’s Trade Deadline and fortify their staff. Who thought that would be the case two months ago, much less two years ago?
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