White Sox 4, Blue Jays 2: Miguel Vargas’ clutch double in the eighth completes the comeback

Adrian Houser has another brilliant start, while the offense and gloves gave him just enough backing

What a game for the Chicago White Sox, as they pick up the late-inning win thanks to Miguel Vargas. The comeback secured just the second road series of the season for the South Siders, and it was their first win of the season after trailing in the seventh inning.

Chris Bassitt and Adrian Houser dueled early on, with both teams going scoreless through three innings. The first run of the ballgame came for the White Sox in the top of the fourth, as Chase Meidroth and Vargas singled, followed by a walk by Kyle Teel. With one out, Luis Robert Jr. came up to the plate and executed horribly on a 1-0 pitch — but put the ball in play, at least, grounding into a force out to drive a run home, thanks to his speed on the bases:

On the other hand, Robert was thrown out by Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk at second base on an attempted steal, cutting short any shot at a rally against a tough pitcher.

Houser cruised through Toronto’s lineup until the bottom of the fifth inning, when a one-out single by Andrés Giménez and double by Myles Straw put runners on second and third. Miguel Vargas threw out Giménez at home on a grounder to first base, but Bo Bichette saved the day for the Jays, with a two-out single to drive in a run to tie the game.

The score stayed 1-1 until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Alan Roden led off with a triple for the Blue Jays, with again Bichette driving in a run with a single. That would be the end of the line for Houser, who put another amazing outing in the books: 6 1⁄3 innings with seven hits, two runs, three walks, and four strikeouts. His ERA now sits at 2.27. Bassitt also was replaced after six innings, with three hits, one run, one walk, and seven strikeouts.

Jordan Leasure finished off the seventh, but not without a bit of tension. He walked Vladmir Guerrero Jr, and a wild pitch moved Bichette to third. With Kirk up at the plate, some good defense by Josh Rojas at third to Teel at home saved a run; as you can see below, the play was all Teel, as Rojas’ throw was way off-line:

Now that momentum seemed to be on our side, the team ran with it. Austin Slater pinch-hit for Ryan Noda, and started the inning off with a leadoff walk. Back-to-back strikeouts by Lenyn Sosa and pinch-hitter Edgar Quero killed the momentum — but it came right back thanks to Michael A. Taylor and Meidroth, as Taylor singled and Meidroth walked. With the bases packed with Sox and two outs, Andrew Benintendi lucked into a little dribbler that was JUST too much for pitcher Jeff Hoffman to handle, tying the score, 2-2, with the bases still loaded for Vargas.

With two strikes, Vargas doubled to drive in two and give the team the late 4-2 lead. Vargas has had some very smart situational hitting this year, and this one came at the perfect time:

Grant Taylor came on the mound in the ninth inning in a high-leverage situation, as he looked to close out the game. He did just that, as George Springer singled but Bichette grounded into a double play, and Addison Barger struck out to end the inning. The last at-bat was beautiful to see, as Taylor threw back-to-back 100 mph pitches outside of the zone, before “slowing” it down to a 97 mph strike to end the game.

This might have been the first of many saves for Taylor in his career, and I could get used to seeing him on the mound late in the game.

It always feels good to cover a win, but a series win on the road just hits different.

The team will return home for some interleague play against the Arizona Diamondbacks starting tomorrow at 6:40 p.m. CT. Shane Smith will be on the mound, which is the perfect pitcher to spur a hot streak. We will see you then, and everyone enjoy this hot Sunday.

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Futility Watch

White Sox 2025 Record: 25-53, the second-worst start in White Sox history and tied for the 75th-worst start in baseball history. A 25-53 record projects to 52-110 over a full season. A year ago, the record-breaking White Sox were 21-57.

This means that once again, the two worst season starts in the 125-year history of the White Sox have come in the past two seasons:

2024 21-57
2025 25-53

All-Time White Sox Record (1901-2025, 19,284 games) 9,619-9,665 (.4988). It’s been 122 games since the White Sox had an all-time winning record. The White Sox are currently 46 games worse than .500 and falling under by 66 more games will land the team at its lowest point in its 125-year history.

Record Since the New Pope Was Revealed as a White Sox Fan 15-24

Race With the Colorado Rockies for to the Worst Record in 2025 7½ games better

• Race to the Worst “Modern” 162-Game Record (2024 White Sox, 41-121)
• Race to the Worst “Modern” Record in a 162-Game Season (1962 Mets, 40-120-1, finished three percentage points worse than the 2024 White Sox)
• Race to the Most White Sox Losses (2024, 121)
• Race to the Worst White Sox Record (2024, 41-121)

11 games better, in all cases

Race to the Worst Post-1899 Record (1916 A’s, 38-124 adjusted to 162 games) 14 games better

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