Month in a Box: The White Sox in August 2025

While the 2024 White Sox had the kind of start that put them on track to finish with the most losses in a modern MLB season, the trade deadline is what really made it possible. They were already playing poorly enough in July, and then Chris Getz removed five productive-enough players from the 26-man roster (and Eloy Jiménez) at the end of that month. They followed up a 3-22 July with a 4-22 August, and the rest is literally history.

The 2025 White Sox also lost some ground in August in the aftermath of the trade deadline, which saw their most valuable starting pitcher shipped out to Tampa Bay, and a useful role player to the Yankees. But the absences of Adrian Houser and Austin Slater didn't contribute as much to the White Sox's backslide as much as simple regression. Be it the rotation or the bullpen, the White Sox pitching staff had been outperforming its peripherals for most of the season, and this is the month the shortage of stuff caught up to everybody, particularly the relievers, who posted the worst collective ERA in the American League for August (5.24).

The offense also took a step back, as the league adjusted to their newfound affection for fastballs, and then some injuries depleted some of the lineup's depth. The White Sox still scored enough runs -- sometimes in bunches -- to finish in the middle third for overall production, even if it was the very back half of it. "Back half of the middle third" could be construed as damning with faint praise, but they're used to being "the worst" or "bottom three," so the fact that they managed to stay out of the bottom 10 reflects an overall improvement in aptitude, even if they're still short on top-line talent.

WHITE SOX TEAM PERFORMANCE

• Record: 9-19
• Standings: Fifth, 30½ GB
• Longest winning streak: 3, July 30-Aug. 2, Aug. 23-25
• Longest losing streak: 6, Aug. 3-9
• Largest margin of victory: 8, Aug. 24 vs. Minnesota
• Largest margin of defeat: 11, Aug. 27 vs. Kansas City

HITTING LEADERS

• Batting average: .301, Kyle Teel
• On-base percentage: .382, Miguel Vargas
• Slugging percentage: .560, Colson Montgomery
• wRC+: 127, Vargas
• Home runs: 10, Montgomery
• RBI: 20, Montgomery and Lenyn Sosa
• Walks: 15, Mike Tauchman
• Strikeouts: 25, Sosa
• Stolen bases: 6, Luis Robert Jr.
• fWAR: 0.8, Montgomery

PITCHING LEADERS

• Wins: 2, Davis Martin and Yoendrys Gómez
• Losses: 4, Tyler Alexander
• ERA: 1.25, Martín Pérez
• Innings: 33⅔, Shane Smith
• Strikeouts: 31, Smith
• Appearances: 13, Jordan Leasure
• Relief innings: 21, Mike Vasil
• fWAR: 0.9, Pérez

COMING AND GOING

• White Sox debuts: Elvis Peguero, Curtis Mead, Bryan Hudson
• White Sox departures: Ryan Noda, Jesse Scholtens, Gus Varland, Jared Shuster, Josh Rojas, Aaron Civale
• Going up: Corey Julks, Owen White (x2), Mead, Hudson, Wikelman González (x2), Peguero (x2), Cam Booser (x2), Yoendrys Gómez, Korey Lee, Will Robertson, Tim Elko, Bryse Wilson
• Going down: Robertson, Elko, White (x2), Jonathan Cannon, Hudson (x2), González, Peguero, Booser, Julks, Amaya, Sean Burke, Tyler Gilbert

#SOXMORGUE

• Dan Altavilla: Right lat strain
• Miguel Vargas: Left oblique strain, left hand sprain
• Chase Meidroth: Right thumb contusion
• Owen White: Right hip impingement
• Elvis Peguero: Right elbow strain
• Luis Robert Jr.: Left hamstring strain

WHITE SOX HONORS

Most Valuable Player: Colson Montgomery

It's strange that a player of the month can bat .198 and still be a confident call, but the first 10-homer month since Luis Robert Jr. in June of 2023, and the first by a White Sox rookie since José Abreu in 2014, is enough to put him over the top, because it also allowed him to lead the team in runs and tie for the team lead in RBIs. Pair it with sturdy defense at shortstop, and Montgomery's strengths are outweighing his weaknesses at this point.

Least Valuable Player: Andrew Benintendi

In a strange twist, no White Sox regular had a terrible month. Benintendi brought up the rear in terms of OPS with his .253/.290/.347 line, but that's a more ordinary kind of underperformance than one you think of being the worst. But when you bring his left field defense into play, then you have to grade Benintendi's bat as a DH, and that's not cutting it.

Most Valuable Pitcher: Shane Smith

After a wobbly start to his August, Shane Smith resembled his All-Star form over his final five starts of the month, pitching no fewer than five innings, and recording outs in the seventh inning for the first two times in his big-league career. He threw his best-ever start against the Royals on Aug. 25, allowing just a hit and a walk over seven shutout innings, and better yet, he needed just 80 pitches. Were he not already well past his previous professional or collegiate career-high workload, a complete game could've been possible.

Least Valuable Pitcher: Jonathan Cannon/Sean Burke

Both were optioned to Charlotte over the course of the month because of disappointments that took different shapes. Cannon got roughed up in three consecutive outings, lasting only five outs in his only start of August, whereas Burke routinely battled inefficiency and foul balls that made him lucky to complete four innings in any given outing. He dodged disaster, but he left a lot of innings for the bullpen to step in it.

Fire Man: Jordan Leasure

One ugly outing against Kansas City aside, Leasure worked his way back into the highest-leverage situations, and Will Venable was generally rewarded for choosing him. The line from his month reflects his new level of bat-missing abilities: 11.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 HR, 3 BB, 20 K.

Gas Can: Tyler Gilbert

It was a toss-up between him and Grant Taylor, but Taylor had some high-leverage successes before the rough patch that further separated his ERA from his FIP, which is how he finished the month with a positive Win Probability Added despite the struggles. Both allowed 10 earned runs over 8⅓ innings, but Gilbert's tab includes two unearned runs, and three inherited runners out of four scored on his watch. He twice only recorded one out when he was expected to deliver some length, which is why he was in Charlotte until Bryan Hudson's strained back sprung him from purgatory.

Bench Player: Korey Lee

It was a strange month for White Sox bench usage, as 11 players started at least half of the games, with a bunch of role players being swapped in and out over the course of August. So let's give it to Korey Lee, who is valuable enough for letting Venable write Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero into any lineup with impunity, but also provided some value of his own, going 2-for-5 with a homer at the plate, and pitching three innings of relief in a pair of blowouts.

Stench Player: Michael A. Taylor?

The question mark is because Taylor is the only guy who was steadily deployed as a reserve over the course of the month, and the placement is because he hit .163/.212/.367. He popped three homers, though, so just like Benintendi being the least productive regular, many others have done far less and Taylor didn't wait long into September to demonstrate the benefits of keeping him around.

Gold Glove: Luis Robert Jr.

Per Statcast, only one outfielder -- Bryce Teodosio of the Angels -- was more valuable than Robert, who accrued 4 Outs Above Average in August alone. You don't need the metrics to tell you, because he provided enough footage to pass any eye test.

Hands of Stone: Brooks Baldwin

Baldwin's outfield play has been a liability all year, and an inexplicable drop in left field prompted Will Venable to call him out publicly for the kinds of mistakes that aren't associated with inexperience. Statcast agrees with the assessment, as he brings up the rear at -3 OAA for the month.

TIMELINE

Officially better: With an Aaron Civale-authored 1-0 victory over the Angels, the White Sox pick up win No. 42, officially surpassing last year's history-making total. There are still 51 games remaining. (Aug. 2)

No takebacks: Mere games into his Yankee career after the White Sox traded him at the deadline for Gage Ziehl, Austin Slater pulls his left hamstring and is projected to miss several weeks. (Aug. 4)

Nayl'd again: Now with the Mariners, Josh Naylor torments the White Sox with both his bat (one homer) and his legs (two stolen bases) in an 8-3 Seattle victory. (Aug. 5)

Cannon fired: Another Naylor homer contributes to an ambush that knocks Jonathan Cannon out of the game before the close of the second inning. The White Sox option him to Charlotte two days later. (Aug. 6)

The prelude to a DFA: While Josh Rojas' offensive numbers are readily apparent to anybody and everybody, his defensive issues come to the fore when he enters the game as a defensive replacement at third base and fires a wild throw on a bunt attempt that allows the tying run to score in a 4-3 loss to the Mariners in 11 innings, sealing the sweep. (Aug. 7)

To Veeck with it: The Jerry Reinsdorf White Sox have always kept his predecessor at arm's length, but they finally embrace Bill Veeck's impact on White Sox history with Bill Veeck night, which features players wearing shorts before the game, and a couple getting married on the field by Ron Kittle during it. (Aug. 9)

Bring back the Goose: Colson Montgomery threatens denizens on the concourse behind right field with a 452 foot homer, the longest at Rate Field this season. (Aug. 10)

Groundbreaking: The White Sox break ground on their long-touted facility in the Dominican Republic, which they've said is both the key to invigorating their international player development, but solidifying buy-in from the players they already have in house. (Aug. 14)

No longer for sale: The Pohlad family pulls the Twins off the block, instead announcing the addition of two "significant limited partnership groups" to help address the team's troublesome finances. They never found a legit buyer after Justin Isbhia abandoned his pursuit and instead invested in the White Sox. (Aug. 15)

B-A-N-A-N-A-S: Rate Field hosts a pair of sold-out games while the White Sox are playing in Kansas City, as the Savannah Bananas take the South Side by storm. (Aug. 16-17)

More of the same: As for that series against the Royals, the White Sox drop all three games to extend their Kauffman Stadium losing streak to 14 games, a skid that dates back to September 2023. (Aug. 17)

Down goes Burke: The White Sox option Sean Burke to Charlotte, putting 40 percent of the team's Opening Day rotation to work serving the same purpose in Triple-A. (Aug. 18)

Pen problems: After needing most of an eight-run lead to secure a victory in the opener in Atlanta, the White Sox blow a six-run lead in an 11-10 loss to the Braves in Game 2. The White Sox had been 23-0 when scoring at least seven runs. (Aug. 19)

Raising in Arizona: While the White Sox went 1-5 on the Kansas City-Atlanta road trip, James went to Arizona to drop in on the recently drafted White Sox players who were beginning their pro careers in the extreme heat of the Phoenix area. (Aug. 21)

Unloading with them loaded: Colson Montgomery hits the first grand slam of his MLB career to account for the difference in a 7-3 win over the Twins. (Aug. 23)

Foreshadowing: Luis Robert Jr.'s legs steal the show in an 8-0 blanking of Minnesota, as he makes a couple of outstanding catches in the gaps. After the game, he waxes sentimental for certainly no reason at all. (Aug. 24)

"I’m just enjoying the moment," Robert said via interpreter. "I don’t know for how long I’m going to be here. What matters is today. Today I’m enjoying the moment, and enjoying being with these guys."

Bullpen problems return: Colson Montgomery homers in a fourth consecutive game as the White Sox build a 4-0 lead through six, but the White Sox bullpen gives up five runs over the final two innings to squander a chance to take a series against the Royals. Not to mention... (Aug. 26)

Oh, that's why: ... that Luis Robert Jr. leaves the game early with hamstring problems. A day later, the White Sox announce that he suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain, and could miss the rest of the season. (Aug. 27)

Third catcher, ninth reliever: After Aaron Civale and Tyler Gilbert team up to give up eight runs in the fifth inning, Korey Lee pitches the final two frames of a 12-1 loss to the Royals to close out the season series in fitting fashion. (Aug. 27)

The body count rises: Miguel Vargas hand gets bent backward when Aaron Judge runs through it as Vargas stretches to catch a wayward Curtis Mead throw from across the diamond. Vargas leaves the game in a tremendous amount of pain, but avoids breaking or tearing anything. (Aug. 28)

Ninth reliever, third catcher: Korey Lee pitches for the second time in three games to help bring to a close another lopsided loss to the Yankees. This one was only by a margin of 10-2. (Aug. 29)

No sweeping: Lenyn Sosa's homer off old friend Tim Hill helps the White Sox beat the Yankees 3-2. They dodge a four-game sweep by the Yankees and end a difficult homestand -- and month -- on a high note. (Aug. 31)