The White Sox were one of the charter members of the American League back in 1901. As they – and the other OGs – celebrate 125 seasons worth of play, action is being taken to try and avoid a fourth straight 100-loss season. The Pale Hose had never even had back-to-back seasons with 100+ losses, let alone three, with 101, 121, and 102 over the last three campaigns. To say that times are tough on the South Side is an understatement. Since winning the World Series in 2005, Chicago only has three postseason appearances, finishing fourth or fifth in the division 10 times.
The uncertainty of the 2027 season and little clarity about TV broadcasting deals were contributing factors as to why most of the AL Central teams didn’t spend money. But, Chicago did, and they deserve a ton of credit for trying. The lineup and the pitching staff are hardly impressive, but second-year skipper Will Venable has more to work with this season and a decent prospect pool will collectively get one year closer to making an impact. Venable has work to do as well, as the White Sox were a league-worst 15-36 in one-run games.
Every season is technically measured by wins and losses, but this season for the White Sox is about figuring out who can stick and who can’t.
Adam Burke’s “Nerdy” Take
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One silver lining to being bad is that flawed prospects can get a chance to work things out at the highest level and that was the case for Colson Montgomery. Chicago’s first-round pick in 2021 tore through the lower minors before driving off the road and getting stuck in mud at AAA. Montgomery’s extreme whiff rates and questionable defensive projection raised a lot of questions, but he slugged 21 homers at the MLB level in just 71 games and actually graded very well at shortstop.
Montgomery debuted on July 4. From the start of the season through July 3, the White Sox batted .220/.292/.342 and their 78 wRC+ was better than only the Rockies. From July 4 to the end of the season, the White Sox slashed .246/.312/.409 with a 101 wRC+. That wasn’t all Montgomery, but Kyle Teel settled in, Brooks Baldwin and Lenyn Sosa flashed good power, and Luis Robert Jr. rebuilt some of his trade value with a 124 wRC+. Despite the second half surge, the White Sox let hitting coach Marcus Thames walk, but did keep director of hitting Ryan Fuller and hired Chicago-area native Derek Shomon, formerly with the Marlins, as the new hitting coach.
PITCHING
Along those same lines, the White Sox let pitching coach Ethan Katz go and replaced him with Zach Bove, an assistant pitching coach for the Royals last season. Hiring from the pitching braintrust in Kansas City is a pretty strong move. Bove was in KC as Cole Ragans, Kris Bubic, and Noah Cameron started their ascensions and was also part of the process with veterans Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo. He has less to work with here, but the White Sox did improve from 4.67 to 4.28 in ERA from 2024 to 2025 and also cut down their team BB%.
That’s the thing about Bove and his Royals ties. KC only walked 8.0% of batters faced, while the White Sox walked 9.7%, which ranked 29th overall. Even with all that contact, the Royals had the fourth-lowest Hard Hit% against and seventh-lowest Barrel%. The White Sox were 21st and 25th, respectively, in those areas. Davis Martin, who had one of the best changeups on the roster, could be a breakout arm this season, plus the Royals tapped into Bove’s southpaw expertise by signing Anthony Kay from the NPB and Sean Newcomb. Expect more changeups and more pitching to contact from the staff.
PROSPECT WATCH
By definition, Chase Meidroth is no longer a prospect, as he played 122 games with 505 PA last season, slashing .253/.329/.320. The jump from AAA to MLB is the biggest in sport and Meidroth, who batted .285/.425/.414 in 264 minor league games and .291/.438/.413 in 598 AAA plate appearances, found out the hard way. He made a lot of weak ground ball contact. Even with just a 4.3% SwStr%, which ranked fourth overall, it was not a good offensive season. Pitchers at this level can locate and his paltry power paired with low bat speed means they’re going to challenge him. As a guy who hit first or second in 89 games, I think he’s Shomon’s most important pupil.
2026 OUTLOOK
The talent level of the White Sox has risen and the uptick in power production with Murakami, who once hit 56 HR in a season in the NPB and hit 22 HR in 56 games last season, Teel, Montgomery, Sosa, and Baldwin, among others, will help the team field a far more competitive offense. This is still an objectively bad starting rotation and an average at best bullpen, even with the signing of Seranthony Dominguez. They’ll probably be a good team to bet Overs with once the weather warms up a bit in Chicago and the rest of the Great Lakes/Midwest region.
BOLD TAKE: Davis Martin wins 10+ games with an ERA under 4.00 for the first time in his career and leads the pitching staff in fWAR
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Jensen Lewis’ “Player” Take
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What do the kids say these days? How it started – How it’s going. That sentiment certainly embodies where the youth movement is on the South Side entering 2026. Top emerging talents in C Kyle Teel, SS Colson Montgomery, DH/C Edgar Quero and 2B Chase Meidroth will team with veterans in 3B Miguel Vargas and LF Andrew Benintendi. A surprise trade that sent OF Luis Robert Jr. to the Mets for bright young prospect INF/OF Luisangel Acuña effectively closes the book on the previous era of White Sox baseball. Is it better than last year? Yes, but how much better will it really be? If you’re glass half-full, their post-All Star break offensive surge, powered by a .727 team OPS and averaging 4.85 runs/game, is definitely worth consideration. Add in the surprise signing of 25-year old Japanese 1B Munetaka Murakami and on the surface, the lineup looks far more potent. There’s an outside chance that nearly each everyday position player can hit double-digit HR by season’s end. Look for Montgomery and Teel to take major steps forward too.
PITCHING
Outside of the greater Chicagoland area, little to no chance the common fan can name the five starters in the White Sox rotation. Maybe that’s even a stretch within the Windy City, but get to know this group quickly. Top starter Shane Smith is a foundational piece moving forward with Davis Martin and Sean Burke following as homegrown talents. Anthony Kay came over from the NPB and the Sox went back to get old friend Erick Fedde signed to a one-year deal in February. Veteran Sean Newcomb will be insurance as starting pitching depth after coming over from the A’s. Free agent Seranthony Domínguez signed a two-year pact to take over closing duties, with Jordan Leasure, Grant Taylor and Mike Vasil, anchoring a backend of the bullpen that started generating much more swing and miss in the second half. Add in freshly-acquired flamethrower Jordan Hicks from the Red Sox in a February trade and the South Siders might just pose a much tougher late-inning challenge for opposing offenses.
PROSPECT WATCH
The cavalry isn’t necessarily coming this year, but a stable of top arms in Noah Schultz, Hagen Smith and Tanner McDougal are among the future additions to the Sox staff. The offensive infusion centers around the prospects acquired from trading Garrett Crochet (Teel, Meidroth) and strong drafting. OF Braden Montgomery is my pick to rocket through the minor league system in 2026, with top minor league prospect INF Caleb Bonemer also a couple years away.
2026 OUTLOOK
First-year manager Will Venable weathered a rough early start in his inaugural campaign and closed with a team that finally became exciting to at least watch again. We are in no danger of the Sox making inroads in the division this season, but they proved to be a thorn in the side of contending teams down the stretch in 2025. This season will center on patience, talent evaluation and hoping for breakout campaigns from several young players.
BOLD TAKE: Munetaka Murakami finishes Top-3 in AL Rookie of the Year voting
For Adam and Jensen’s Season Win Total Picks, get our 2026 MLB Betting Guide.
