CHICAGO -- Right-hander Shane Smith and catcher Edgar Quero are integral parts of where the White Sox currently reside as a team and where they hope to go in moving from rebuild to consistently competitive.
These two young talents are also very honest about their collective struggles through the first 11 games of the 2026 season, as evidenced by their comments following a 4-2 loss to Baltimore Tuesday afternoon at a frigid Rate Field.
“Everybody knows I suck right now. I'm not afraid to say it,” Quero said. “But at the same time I'm working every day, trying to work hard, trying to come back.”
“Not really putting our team in a good position to win. Just killing our bullpen. As we get into a season and the games start stacking up, we need these guys to be as fresh as possible,” Smith said. “Not being able to get past 3 2/3 in the first [three] starts, it puts you in a tough spot.”
Smith took a step in the right direction in a strange way. He walked five and hit one over 3 2/3 innings and 99 pitches, which would seem like the perfect recipe for Baltimore success offensively.
Baltimore only got one hit off Smith, literally and physically. Samuel Basallo’s third-inning line drive with a 108 mph exit velocity, per Statcast, caught Smith in the left leg, but he stayed in the game and didn’t allow a run.
In the first, Smith walked two but struck out the side. In the second, he walked two and hit Blaze Alexander with a pitch on the top of the helmet to load the bases with two outs. Gunnar Henderson battled Smith for 12 pitches in the ensuing at-bat, including seven foul balls, before he swung through a 3-2 changeup to end the rally.
“Just trying to make him swing the bat,” said Smith of the Henderson battle. “He’s good. He’s got a good eye. If you are trying to trick him, it’s really not going to work. Just trying to throw everything in the zone and make him make a decision.”
“It was a little tough for him at the beginning,” Quero said. “He was around the zone a little bit. But thank god he made a really good adjustment, struck out a lot of guys today and it was a better start for him.”
That adjustment, according to Quero, was going more to the curve, which Smith threw 41 times and recorded 10 swings and misses of his 17, again per Statcast. He struck out eight overall but wanted to go deeper after working a combined 4 2/3 innings over his first two starts.
“He did a nice job as far as getting some swing and miss in the zone. Really good curveball early in the game,” said White Sox manager Will Venable of Smith. “The four-seam fastball was better, that’s something he’s struggled with -- the command.
“Obviously the command overall wasn’t there. The number of walks that he issued, the hit batter, still working to be more efficient in the zone.”
Henderson’s two-run connection against southpaw Chris Murphy completed a three-run rally in the eighth for Baltimore, as the Orioles improved to 14-1 against the White Sox since 2024 and extended their winning streak at the Rate to 10 straight. Quero finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout to end the eighth as the game-tying run, dropping his average to .148 with no homers or RBIs.
Tuesday’s effort dropped Smith’s ERA to 10.80. It’s just two weeks into a long season, but both young players are working to find the rhythm to get them back to top form. That top form was on display for much of their 2025 rookie seasons.
"[Davis Martin] goes six the other day, [Erick Fedde] is throwing really well, [Anthony Kay] is throwing the ball well and [Sean Burke],” Smith said. “You don’t want to be the anchor with any staff or on any team. I’m just trying to do well so we can win some ballgames … Not giving up any runs is a step in the right direction for sure. Walking five probably isn’t. I think there’s good and bad.”
“Sometimes you hit the ball hard and the ball is not finding the hole,” Quero said. “But no, everything is good. Just trying to keep working every day, working hard. I want to come back."