Martin returns to form in strong outing to begin to second half

TORONTO -- After emerging as one of the most effective pitchers in the American League through the first two months of the season, White Sox right-hander Davis Martin had an uneven end to his first half.

Through Martin’s first 11 starts of 2026, he owned an 8-1 record with a 2.00 ERA, 27 percent strikeout rate and 5.3 percent walk rate. But in his seven starts after the calendar flipped to June, he stumbled to a 1-3 record, his ERA rose to 6.34 and his strikeout rate (13.6%) and walk rate (11%) dipped in that stretch.

Back on the mound for Chicago on Saturday following the All-Star break, though, the 29-year-old looked much more like the pitcher from April and May as he delivered 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball for the White Sox in a 1-0 loss to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

“I think just mechanically being back in sync,” Martin said postgame of his return to form. “[I was] a lot more loose on the mound and not pressing.”

“It’s a good tone-setter for the second half. I think there’s some things we can get better on, but for the most part, just really happy with how we could make adjustments on the fly. I kind of felt more like myself, compared to the prior month.”

Despite Martin’s bounce-back effort, Chicago couldn’t keep its momentum rolling offensively from Friday’s 12-run outburst and managed just four hits in the defeat.

The White Sox did have chances to cash runners in scoring position following doubles in the first, fourth and fifth innings, but Blue Jays starter Shane Bieber managed to escape each of those frames unscathed.

“Bieber did a really nice job today. I thought he spun the ball really well below the zone, and that kind of got us in between,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “I thought we didn't really take the good swings that we're used to seeing these guys take, and couldn't get anything going even after getting some leadoff guys on there."

Even though it came in a loss, Martin’s outing bodes well for the team’s hopes of pushing for a playoff spot in the second half. If he can replicate what he delivered at Rogers Centre going forward, Chicago’s high-scoring lineup will likely back him up more often than not.

The formula was simple for Martin against Toronto as he filled up the zone throughout the afternoon, landing 55 of his 85 pitches for strikes and throwing first-pitch strikes to 53 percent of the hitters he faced.

It lined up with what Venable had hoped to see from his starter in the outing.

“It starts with the fastball with him, as it does with a lot of these guys,” Venable said pregame. “Fastball command, if he's feeling good and he's able to throw his fastball in the zone, he's got so many other pitches that he can be effective with.

“Obviously, a night like tonight, with a lot of righties in there, he's gonna have to use that fastball in the zone and then be effective with the slider and all the other offspeed stuff, too.”

Martin used his deep arsenal of pitches to keep the Blue Jays from stringing much together, allowing one run on four hits and two walks while striking out five. He did, however, lean heavily on his trio of fastballs -- throwing a combined 61 sinkers (23), cutters (20), and four-seamers (18) -- to generate soft contact.

The only run Toronto did muster came in the fourth inning, when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lined a one-out double off the wall in center field and came around to score on George Springer’s single up the middle.

“I thought he commanded the fastball well,” Venable said of Martin. “Talked about that, and he was in the zone, pitching to some contact. Not a ton of swing-and-miss today, but a really nice job.”

Martin said that he spent his All-Star break at PitchingWRX in Oklahoma City, working on recovering for the stretch run and fine-tuning his mechanics, which helped him return to the White Sox feeling rejuvenated.

Besides those refined mechanics, Martin isn’t looking to complicate things after his rough patch before his time off.

“It’s just having fun,” Martin said. “I think I got back to having fun and enjoying the guys. I think we all talk about how close this team is, and we were away from each other for four days. … It’s just good to be back and having fun.”