White Sox to face Astros in AL Wild Card Series, rematch of '21 postseason clash

CHICAGO -- Houston, you might have a problem.

Or maybe the Astros will be presenting the problem for the White Sox.

Either way, the American League Wild Card matchup has been set, with the South Siders traveling to Daikin Park for a first pitch of 4 p.m. CT Tuesday against the AL West champion Astros in this best-of-three competition. This series became official via the Rangers’ loss to the Twins, clinching the division for Houston. (The Astros won anyway, beating the A’s, 9-0, minutes later.)

The White Sox claimed a 4-2 victory over the Rockies in a game that meant little more than the finale of a surprisingly excellent 84-78 campaign for manager Will Venable’s crew. Now they can officially prepare for an Astros squad that took three out of four on the road against them from Aug. 31 to Sept. 3, with the Astros also winning two out of three at Rate Field from July 24-26.

“We just have to play our game against them,” White Sox starter Sean Burke told MLB.com following the regular-season finale. “I don’t think there’s anything extra we need to do. We didn't play our best baseball against them. Our opponent is our opponent. Our focus is playing our best brand of baseball. If we play our best baseball, it doesn’t matter who our opponent is.”

“It’s a solid team,” designated hitter Andrew Benintendi said. “I’ve played playoff games there before. It gets loud. It’s muggy and hot. A lot of people, so it’s going to be a fun atmosphere for sure.”

These two teams battled in the '21 AL Division Series, marking the last trip to the playoffs for the White Sox, with the Astros winning in four. Houston was managed by Dusty Baker and the White Sox were managed by Tony La Russa at the time.

Of course, the White Sox would prefer to remember their 2005 World Series encounter, when they finished off a four-game sweep with two exciting victories in Houston. Regardless of the ultimate outcome of this series, the South Siders have earned their postseason spot coming off three straight years of 100-plus losses.

“From the outside people might see pressure on us, but I’ve never felt like that once in the clubhouse," Burke said. “We are in a really good spot heading into the postseason.”

“I don't think anyone really expected it,” said left-hander Anthony Kay, who earned Sunday’s victory by allowing one run in five innings. “We had a vision and we executed it. But I don't think anyone saw [coming] the kind of success that we had, and I think it was really fun to be a part of. Hopefully we can continue it as long as possible."

With Burke, Davis Martin and Kay having pitched this weekend against the Rockies, look for Erick Fedde to play a significant role in Tuesday’s Game 1. The White Sox also could go to an opener.

“We’ll get together here as we make our way to Houston and talk about what we’re going to do with our pitching, our lineup, without knowing right off the bat who they’re going to start,” Venable said. “But we’ll start talking about those things as we get more information.”

Sunday’s crowd of 29,767 gave the White Sox a final home attendance of 1,986,416, which is their highest attendance since 2022. That '22 season is the only one where the White Sox have surpassed 2 million fans since 2011.

This group played inspired baseball from basically the start of the season. The fans responded.

“It’s a mutual thing,” said Venable of his team and White Sox fans. “It takes good baseball and a good team that you want to come out and support, and the way our guys have gone out and played -- played extremely hard, played well, they’re good players, good guys that I think everybody identifies with. It’s been great to watch them both grow together.”

“They've been awesome,” Kay said of the fans. “Hopefully we can go far enough so we can get a couple of home games for them, and being able to experience that will be really special."

That goal can only happen if the White Sox take care of the Astros in Houston.