White Sox’ – The White Sox erupted for eight runs in the fourth inning and added a ninth on Friday night, beating the Giants 9-4 to open a three-game set at San Francisco. Davis Martin’s control wobbled briefly, but his overall performance held while Sam Antonacci and othe
SAN FRANCISCO — The White Sox made it feel like a different version of their season in the fourth inning. No homers. No hesitation. Just a run of baserunners that San Francisco never managed to untangle, turning a manageable game into something closer to a statement.
Friday night’s 9-4 win to open a three-game set against the Giants started with Davis Martin looking like an ace and ended with the Sox proving they could score in more ways than they had been forced to this season. Their biggest inning of offense in three years carried them past one of the few uneven starts Martin has had in his breakout run.
San Francisco went quiet until the fourth, when the Sox scored without a single home run. Martin’s offense-supported night began with Giants starter Trevor McDonald mowing down the Sox through the first three outs. Then McDonald unraveled when he hit Sam Antonacci and Munetaka Murakami with pitches to open the fourth.
A Colson Montgomery single, a Chase Meidroth walk, and an Andrew Benintendi double followed, putting three runs on the board. The inning didn’t stop there. Edgar Quero drove in a run with a fielder’s choice. Derek Hill added an RBI single. When Antonacci was hit again in the same inning by Giants reliever Ryan Borucki, bases loaded again.
Murakami cleared the mess with a double to the left-field corner, making it 8-0. The Giants looked briefly as if they might escape when Miguel Vargas’ grounder got them closer, but shortstop Willy Adames’ throw sailed down the first-base line, scoring Murakami.
By the time Borucki finally struck out Montgomery to end the inning, the damage was done. The nine-spot marked the most the White Sox had scored in an inning since their 11-run outburst against the Reds on May 7, 2023.
“It’s a little different for us, but that’s what the offense can do,” Martin said. “We can win and do different things.” Martin’s ERA rose to 2.04, still the third-lowest in the American League.
The Sox’ fourth-inning outburst also included a rarity inside a rarity: Antonacci was hit twice in the same inning. a franchise first. according to the team. The only comparable precedent came in a July 25. 2017. Crosstown matchup against the Cubs. when John Lackey hit Jose Abreu. Matt Davidson. and Yoan Moncada in the fifth inning.
Manager Will Venable said the outcome matched Antonacci’s style. “Sounds fitting for Sam,” Venable said. “That’s part of his game, which is rare for guys… He stands in there, doesn’t get out of the way sometimes. So credit for him for standing in there.”
San Francisco’s push returned in the fifth. The Giants loaded the bases against Martin. plating two runs when Adames grounded into a forceout and Luis Arraez knocked an infield single through the left side. After a wild pitch from Martin, Casey Schmitt’s groundout added another run, bringing it to 9-3.
Matt Chapman doubled off Martin to begin the Giants’ half of the sixth, and Chapman came around on catcher Jesus Rodriguez’s groundout. When Montgomery fumbled a grounder that would’ve ended the inning, Venable pulled Martin at 5 ⅔ innings.
Martin finished with four runs on six hits and two walks, with seven strikeouts. It was just the second start of Martin’s 10 in his breakout season in which he gave up more than two runs. The right-hander had ended a six-start stretch in which he allowed one run or posted a shutout. In his first outing of the year, Martin gave up three runs over five innings in Miami. On Friday, the bullpen picked up the final work: Tyler Davis, Brandon Eisert, and Trevor Richards did the rest.
After the Sox’ nine-run surge carried them, Tyler Davis said the timing mattered in its own way: “It’s always good to have a bad day when your offense scores nine.”
White Sox Giants Davis Martin Trevor McDonald Sam Antonacci Munetaka Murakami Will Venable nine-run inning Oracle Park