3 takeaways as White Sox reach halfway mark of season with 26-55 record

CHICAGO — Sean Burke struck out the first three batters Wednesday at Rate Field. But because leadoff hitter Geraldo Perdomo reached on a passed ball, the Arizona Diamondbacks still had a chance to do damage.

Josh Naylor did just that, hitting a two-run home run.

That perfectly summed up the first 81 games for the 2025 Chicago White Sox. There were some positives but also plenty of growing pains.

The Sox dug out of the early hole for a 7-3 victory in front of 10,217. They scored twice in the first, including a solo home run by Andrew Benintendi. Lenyn Sosa gave them the lead with a two-run homer in the fourth and added an RBI single in the sixth and a solo homer in the eighth.

“It’s very rewarding,” Sosa said of the two-homer day.

The Sox are 26-55 halfway through the season, the second-worst 81-game start in franchise history. Last year’s team was 21-60 at this point.

Thursday’s game continued another 2025 trend during Will Venable’s first year as manager. The Sox are averaging 6.1 runs in their wins and 2.2 in their losses.

“There are a lot of things to highlight,” general manager Chris Getz told reporters Monday when asked about reaching the midway point. “There are other areas that need to be continued to develop, worked on. We are focused on doing that.

“We had objectives coming in we really wanted to focus on with our major league staff, and they have done a pretty good job in executing that. We know there’s more that needs to happen for us to turn the corner and accelerate some things.

“Overall, feel pretty good about things. When you look at a record like we have, you are not too happy about it by any stretch. But there are some positives that we can hang our hat on and continue to move forward.”

Here are three areas that stood out through the first 81 games.

1. All eyes are still on Luis Robert Jr.

Robert had hoped his home run in Tuesday’s game would be a sign of positive things to come. But the center fielder exited in the first inning Wednesday with left hamstring tightness.

Venable said Robert still was being evaluated after Wednesday’s game.

“Feel like he’s in an OK spot,” Venable said. “Give him the off day (Thursday), see where we’re at on Friday.”

It has been a tough year for Robert, who was aiming to return to his 2023 All-Star form. He’s hitting .185 with eight homers and 32 RBIs in 73 games. Wednesday’s injury occurred while he was pursuing a fly ball.

All year, Robert has been mentioned in trade speculation.

“Right now I’m here (playing) for this team,” Robert said through an interpreter Tuesday when asked about possibly still being with the Sox beyond the July 31 trade deadline. “I know they have two (club) options. It’s a possibility. I’d like to be here. Like I’ve said before, my mind is here. I don’t try to think ahead.”

The Sox did deal another longtime member of their lineup June 13, sending first baseman Andrew Vaughn to the Milwaukee Brewers for pitcher Aaron Civale. Vaughn was with Triple-A Charlotte at the time of the trade, having been optioned May 23. He slashed .189/.218/.314 with five homers and 19 RBIs in 48 games for the Sox this year.

As for Robert’s future, Getz said Monday: “We’ve never been out there making phone calls about Luis Robert. It’s teams calling us and we have conversations and we stick to the plan that we’ve been working by so far, in which if we feel like we can help the long-term health of the organization, so be it.

“We like having Luis Robert and I enjoy having him in the lineup on a nightly basis.”

2. New faces are making the most of opportunities.

Catcher Kyle Teel drove in a run with a first-inning single Wednesday, then singled and scored on Sosa’s home run in the fourth and doubled and scored on Sosa’s single in the sixth.

“Stick to my plan, have a good approach and take good swings,” Teel said.

Teel is one of nine rookies currently on the roster. And he wasn’t the only one to contribute Wednesday.

Burke allowed two unearned runs on five hits in five innings. Reliever Grant Taylor, who has a blazing fastball, allowed one unearned run in two innings.

Shortstop Chase Meidroth, who like Teel came over from the Boston Red Sox in the Garrett Crochet trade in December, collected an RBI on a sacrifice fly.

Overall, the Sox have used 16 rookies this season, including productive Rule 5 pitchers Shane Smith and Mike Vasil. Edgar Quero is sharing the work at catcher with Teel.

“If you look around the field, some of these young players are stepping up and developing,” Getz said.

3. Miguel Vargas provides a blueprint for growth.

Vargas had a .139 average with five doubles and six RBIs in his first 22 games this season. He’s hitting .269 with 15 doubles, 10 home runs and 28 RBIs in the 56 games since.

“Miguel Vargas is continuing to get better and is becoming an impactful bat at the major league level, which is great for us, great for the future,” Getz said Monday.

The corner infielder tweaked his stance and took off, providing a blueprint for the type of growth the Sox are looking to attain throughout the organization.

“A lot of the positive things we’ve done and some of the things that individual guys have been able to do, making some adjustments and getting back on track,” Venable said, evaluating the halfway point before Wednesday’s game. “Some of the adversity guys have overcome and how this group collectively has gelled together and what they’ve created as a group is something that I’m happy that’s happened and proud of.

“But also a lot of things that we need to clean up and continue to progress and get better at and continue to push and get some better results here.”