Sox fight back, but get shut down by Miller in series finale

SAN DIEGO – Two of the goals for the White Sox at the start of this three-game set at Petco Park seemed fairly obvious: Score early, and avoid the Padres' bullpen, including Mason Miller, their virtually unhittable closer.

The White Sox didn’t see Miller until Sunday afternoon, when he struck out the side in the ninth to preserve a 4-3 Padres victory and pick up his league-leading 11th save. San Diego improved to 20-13 and avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of the South Siders.

Even with their five-game winning streak coming to an end, the White Sox still proved what manager Will Venable has been saying since Spring Training – this is a good baseball team.

“They know that, they believe in each other, they believe in themselves,” Venable said. “We’ve just got to continue to battle and, as we continue to just play good baseball, we continue to develop that belief. So, a good series for us.”

“Everyone in this clubhouse can compete in the big leagues,” said White Sox starter Anthony Kay. “We showed that we can compete with anyone in this league.”

Kay came into this series finale with a 6.12 ERA. He smiled postgame while adding he felt like the “weak link a little bit in the rotation,” pitching behind six scoreless innings from Noah Schultz and Sean Burke against the Padres and the stellar starts to the 2026 season from Davis Martin and Erick Fedde.

There was a reason for Kay to smile on Sunday, though, as the southpaw allowed three runs (two earned) over five innings, while striking out five and walking two. Pitching coach Zach Bove spoke before the game about some changes Kay made while working on the side in between starts, but would not divulge those specifics before he took the mound.

Miguel Andujar and Manny Machado went deep against Kay during a three-run fourth, representing Sunday’s damage against the starter.

“A lot of it was just mentality, in the zone,” Kay said. “Obviously, we made a couple of physical adjustments, but most of it is just the mentality of attacking guys and getting back in the zone. Obviously, those two home runs are not ideal, but those are still some pretty good pitches that were good swings by them.”

“It’s staying consistent with guys and showing the trust in them, how we are not too far off,” said Bove of Kay, but talking about the pitching staff in general. “We have to continue to make these little tweaks.”

San Diego held that 3-1 lead into the seventh when Chase Meidroth opened the inning with a single off Adrian Morejon. Pinch-hitter Derek Hill took over for Jarred Kelenic and, after failing on a bunt attempt, launched a game-tying two-run home run 409 feet to left-center.

Contributions from literally the entire roster have helped make the White Sox successful through the start of May. The Padres pushed across a run in the eighth on Xander Bogaerts’ two-out infield single against Bryan Hudson, which was perfectly placed down the third-base line, leading to the matchup with Miller.

Tristan Peters came through with a two-out single and stole second base. But Miller shut down Luisangel Acuña on three pitches, using a slider out of the zone to end the White Sox hope for six straight wins.

“You just grind,” said Venable on facing Miller. “He’s the best there is, so you’ve just got to do whatever you can to scratch and claw.

“After all that, we get a runner in scoring position to tie the game there and just weren’t able to finish the job. But a really nice job by the guys grinding against the best pitcher on the planet.”

Additional help is on the horizon for the White Sox, as outfielder Braden Montgomery, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 31 overall, according to MLB Pipeline, was promoted from Double-A Birmingham to Triple-A Charlotte. The 23-year-old had a 1.035 OPS, six homers and 22 RBIs for the Barons.

Meanwhile, Sunday’s setback dropped the White Sox to 16-18 and prevented them from getting to .500 after more than five games into a season for the first time since finishing the 2022 campaign at 81-81. They move on to Anaheim next, after sweeping the Angels at home to start this winning streak.

They make that 90-minute journey by bus, knowing they can compete with anyone. It was on display this weekend.

“Facing one of the best teams in baseball, and we performed very well,” said catcher Drew Romo, who hit his third homer this week in defeat. “On all fronts, we felt really good. We have a lot of confidence. … Really good series. I’d say that our team is clicking right now.”