White Sox roast Royals with 22-run fire at plate before 'Marshmello' caps the night

CHICAGO -- Are there even words to describe the White Sox performance during a 22-1 roasting of the Royals on Friday night at Rate Field?

Let’s allow the highly successful participants from the South Side, who now sit alone atop the American League Central by one game over the Guardians, to give it a try.

“Special. It was a special night,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “Really good stuff up and down the lineup.”

“It’s incredible,” center fielder Tristan Peters said. “It’s a ton of fun when everybody is doing well and seeing the ball well and everybody wants to hit.”

“That was sick,” first baseman Jacob Gonzalez said. “No other way to put it.”

OK, those sentiments represent strong starts. But let’s dig a little deeper within the numbers.

• Miguel Vargas, Peters, Gonzalez, Kyle Teel and Andrew Benintendi launched home runs. It was Teel’s first of the season and the first career grand slam for Peters. Vargas and Gonzalez both finished a triple shy of the cycle.
• Peters (six RBIs), Vargas and Gonzalez (five RBIs) became just the second White Sox trio since 1920 with 5-plus RBIs in the same game. The only other time it happened was April 23, 1955 against the then-Kansas City A's. The honors for that game went to Sherm Lollar (5), Minnie Miñoso (5) and Bob Nieman (7).
• Everyone who had a plate appearance for the White Sox reached base. Everyone but Braden Montgomery had at least one hit. Eight players had multi-hit efforts in the 23-hit attack, topped by four from Chase Meidroth.
• The 22 runs scored were the most since May 31, 1970, when the White Sox scored 22 against Boston. It’s also tied for the second-most in franchise history. The most the White Sox scored in a game was 29 vs. the Kansas City A's on April 23, 1955.
• Let’s not forget the White Sox also scored 10 runs in the third off Mitch Spence, raising his ERA to 21.21.

This outburst marked the White Sox highest inning total since putting up 11 at the Reds in the second inning on May 7, 2023. Their third began with a Gonzalez walk, a Sam Antonacci single and Vargas’ 18th home run. That particular long ball was called seconds before by Mike Vasil, the energetic dugout force rehabbing his way back from Tommy John surgery, who was mic’d up for CHSN’s all-access Friday.

Teel walked, Benintendi doubled and one out later, Meidroth’s infield single scored the fourth run. But the White Sox weren’t done. Not even close.

Braden Montgomery walked and Peters singled home two for a 6-0 advantage. Gonzalez launched a three-run blast to right, Antonacci singled and Vargas doubled him home. Four RBIs in the inning for Vargas, just a little less than half of the White Sox total.

“We all know how hard this game is,” Meidroth said. “When everyone is getting theirs, it’s not every day that happens. It’s awesome that everyone could get a swing off today.”

“We’re trying to slug, honestly,” Peters said. “Do damage and move to the next guy.”

David Sandlin (2-1) benefitted from this outburst, allowing one run with six strikeouts over six innings. But if these tangible results aren’t enough to highlight Friday’s Royals obliteration, let’s go a little more esoteric to illustrate the quick and early destruction.

• Attempts at the wave, which should always be limited regardless of the score, began in the fourth inning.
• The “tarps off” group, which usually assembles later in the game, made their way to the corner of the left field upper deck in the third.
• Sandlin opened the fourth with nine straight pitches out of the zone and eventually walked the bases loaded. Venable put that issue on Sandlin’s extended time off the mound as the White Sox scored 10. Yet there never was a concern. Not with a double-digit advantage.
• Fans in the stands wearing Marshmello helmets were frequently featured on the center-field scoreboard. That element might not equate to success as much as it was tribute to the DJ scheduled to do a postgame concert.

Vasil has his dugout magic wand, purchased by reliever Jordan Leasure for $20 from Amazon, and has a sorcerer’s hat used only for home runs. It got a workout on Friday.

Even with the White Sox holding a 20-run edge, Vargas was running hard to beat out a double play in the seventh and add a 21st run. Venable challenged the call when Vargas was ruled out at first, with the overturn giving him a fifth RBI.

A tone was set for this series in more ways than offensive firepower, as the White Sox improved to 42-38 overall and have won 23 of their last 28 at home.

“There wasn’t an inning that we took off. We battled for nine innings,” Meidroth said. “That’s always good building momentum going into tomorrow and the weekend.”