Pregame notes: Adrian Houser/Tristan Gray Revenge Game

When you send out talent like Adrian Houser and Tristan Gray out into the baseball world, it's only a matter of time until they're both in an opposing lineup ready to do battle.

"I don't think it's any different," Will Venable said of preparing for Tuesday night. "It's about us continuing to do the things that we've been doing, and we want to do, and we know we have to do to play well. In the case of Adrian, we loved having him here. We know he's a great competitor, a great teammate. So we know we'll have our work cut out for us. He's also pitched well this whole year, which we saw first hand. So yeah, excited about the challenge and excited to be able to compete against him."

If it feels like Venable's answer didn't really address Gray, it's probably because few (or none) of the assembled media realized that Gray was in the lineup until we got upstairs to the press box.

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Miguel Vargas, ebullient after the triumph of his beloved Vikings Monday night, took batting practice on Tuesday, and Venable doesn't think he will require a rehab assignment. Part of the decision seems driven by new tech rather than simply eagerness.

"We’re going to see how long this takes these next couple days, but we’re comfortable with him working off the Trajekt," Venable said. "He just has to be ready, but we think we can get him there without going on a rehab assignment."

Vargas' first day of hitting off the Trajekt was on Monday, before he headed out to Soldier Field. He is already eligible to return from the IL. Vargas is hitting .234/.315/.404 (100 wRC+) on the season.

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Everyone loves injuries to major prospects, so let's squeeze in two of them.

Braden Montgomery basically isn't expected to wear a Birmingham Barons jersey again this season, after suffering what the team described as a small fracture in his right foot from a hit by pitch on Saturday. He is still expected to heal in time to play in the Arizona Fall League, and now it will be more of a chance to get him back in rhythm after a layoff rather than an attempt to get Montgomery close to a big league workload.

Noah Schultz's recurrence of patellar tendinitis lacks the violence of Montgomery's injury, but he is expected to be effectively done for the year. Having the same issue flare up again makes the Sox disinclined to try to touch the hot stove again in 2025, and the AFL doesn't seem like the best place for Schultz to try to get back in rhythm.

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Mike Tauchman returned to the lineup on Sunday after missing four games this week. Venable said they'll be judicious about his usage down the stretch, but expanded rosters will make it hard to differentiate accommodations for Tauchman from curiosity to see Will Robertson and Dominic Fletcher.

Similarly, it's hard to distinguish Venable's description of Tauchman's ailments from any man in his mid-to-late 30s describing how they feel about working out.

"We're gonna be mindful of everybody's usage, including Tauch, who's continuing to deal with multiple different areas of soreness," Venable said. "Off day was great after that 17-day stretch. We got another nine games in a row here, where we got a lot of guys banged up, just like everybody in the league does."

Tauchman is hitting .274/.363/.409 (118 wRC+) on the season

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Top picks from the 2025 draft Billy Carlson and Jaden Fauske are in the building on Tuesday, touring Rate Field for the first time after wrapping up bridge league action at the team complex in sweltering Arizona.

They had more to say in individual interviews Sox Machine had with Carlson and Fauske, but both have been gravitating to Colson Montgomery while in Chicago.

"Colson comes to mind, he’s killing it, super cool dude, he texted me right when I got drafted like, 'I'm here when you need me.’" Carlson said. "So, that just speaks to his character and the kind of guy he is."

"Talking to Colson, he said he remembered being in our shoes when he was doing this tour after he was drafted, so hopefully in a couple years we’re in the same spot, talking to the new guys who just got drafted," Fauske said.

Hopefully, kid.

First pitch: White Sox vs. Rays

TV: CHSN

Radio: ESPN 1000 AM, WRTO 1200 AM (Spanish)

Lineups: