Meidroth Goes 4-for-4, White Sox Steal Rubber Match in Texas
Chase Meidroth was untouchable Thursday, going 4-for-4 with 2 RBI to pace Chicago's 4-2 win over Texas. The White Sox took the rubber match behind a fourth-inning explosion that broke the game open and never looked back.
The story of the night was Meidroth, who didn't waste a single at-bat. He got Chicago on the board in the second inning, singling to left to score B. Montgomery. Texas answered immediately — Cam Cauley launched a 382-foot homer to right to knot it at 1-1 — but that would be as close as the Rangers would get. The fourth inning is where this game was decided. Meidroth singled to right to score Murakami and push Montgomery to second, a play that swung the home win probability from 57% to 44%. That single hit shifted the entire complexion of the game. Andrew Benintendi followed with a single to center, scoring Montgomery to make it 3-1. Texas clawed one back on a Díaz groundout double play that scored Nimmo, but Chicago's lead held at 3-2 heading into the middle innings.
Benintendi wasn't done. In the sixth, he singled to center again — his second hit of the night — scoring Montgomery for the fourth time in the game and pushing the lead to 4-2. Montgomery's three runs scored on just one hit looks like the kind of quiet, disruptive performance that gets overlooked in a box score but wins games. Cal Quantrill had nothing for Texas, lasting just 3.0 innings and allowing 2 earned runs on 2 hits and 3 walks with only 1 strikeout. That early exit forced the Rangers' bullpen into a long night against a White Sox lineup that kept finding ways on base.
On the mound, Anthony Kay gave Chicago 5.0 innings, allowing 5 hits and 2 earned runs with 4 strikeouts — serviceable enough to keep the team in front. The real pitching story, though, appears to be the relief work behind him. Grant Taylor threw 2.0 immaculate innings — no hits, no walks, 5 strikeouts — and Bryan Hudson added a clean 1.0 inning with 2 strikeouts of his own. Combined, Chicago's relievers threw 3.0 innings, allowed zero baserunners, and struck out 7. That's the kind of bullpen performance that turns a close game into a comfortable one. With the Aug. 3 trade deadline approaching, both organizations will be making decisions about their rosters soon — but tonight belonged entirely to Chicago.