Chicago White Sox Comeback Falls Short In Loss To Rays, Houser

CHICAGO –– The White Sox returned from a 6-1 road trip to face the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday at Rate Field, a game with a few familiar faces for both teams.

On the mound for the Rays was Adrian Houser, who signed with the White Sox in May and was flipped at the deadline after posting a 2.10 ERA in 11 starts. Starting at third base for the White Sox was Curtis Mead, who was sent from Tampa to Chicago in the Houser trade alongside minor league pitchers Duncan Davitt and Ben Peoples.

Both played a role in Tuesday’s 5-4 Rays victory, with Houser holding the White Sox to three runs in 5.1 innings while striking out a season-high nine batters and Mead going 0-for-4 with a runner left on base.

The White Sox offense ranked fifth in MLB in runs scored since the All-Star break, so their four runs on Tuesday weren’t too far below their 5.3-run average since July 18. But 13 strikeouts meant the ball wasn’t in play as frequently, which limited their scoring chances.

At the same time, it doesn’t discourage manager Will Venable from what the lineup has done in the second half and what's to come.

“I'm going to say more of a one-off. We've done a really good job putting the ball in play,” Venable said. “Gotta give Adrian some credit too. We've obviously seen him here and what he's been able to do. He was great. I think he did his thing and found some spots in the zone that he could attack and made it really tough on us. This was one of those nights where you kind of get beat by a starting pitcher, and we know that Adrian is a really good one."

The biggest swing of the game came from a player who may have been overlooked in the storyline of White Sox-turned-Rays –– and vice versa –– meeting for the first time with their new teams. That would be Tristan Gray, whose solo home run in the seventh inning off Tyler Alexander turned out to be the game-winner.

Gray never appeared in a game for the White Sox this season, but he was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte on July 7, when Ryan Noda hit the injured list. However, his Major League stint would be short-lived, as the White Sox optioned Gray back to Triple-A on July 8 after reinstating Luis Robert Jr. from the injured list.

After signing with the White Sox as a minor league free agent in January, Gray spent the majority of his 2025 season with the Charlotte Knights. He slashed .270/.333/.472/.805 with nine home runs and 44 RBIs. But on July 26, he was traded to Tampa Bay for cash considerations and has stuck on their Major League roster ever since.

Gray’s blast overtook another productive night for the White Sox young core, beginning with Kyle Teel’s home run in the first. Teel caught Houser during their time as teammates in Chicago, so he had a sense of what to expect when he stepped to the plate.

“It was different facing him. He’s a good pitcher,” Teel said. “I just know he’s got an elite sinker, and that’s what I got.”

Fellow rookies Chase Meidroth and Colson Montgomery drove in runs in the fifth and sixth innings, respectively. Veteran outfielder Andrew Benintendi stayed hot and tied the game with an RBI single in the sixth, giving him 29 hits in his last 90 at-bats, a .322 average.

A few moments before, Venable was ejected for arguing balls and strikes with home plate umpire Vic Carapazza on a sinker landed above the strike zone to Lenyn Sosa.

"Yeah there was some frustration building on our side, probably on their side too,” Venable said. “Just one of those nights. It happens. It's baseball. It's a tough job back there. Just some pitches didn't go our way."

“Will’s got our back,” Teel said. “That’s the biggest thing. We’re all behind him. We got his back as well.”

The White Sox tried to rally after Gray’s home run, as Sosa singled in the eighth. But the heart of the order couldn’t bring him home, with Montgomery striking out and Edgar Quero flying out to shallow left field. In the ninth, Brooks Baldwin reached on an error by Gray with two outs, but Meidroth lined out sharply to end the game.

With this loss, the White Sox fell to 55-90 overall, but they're 6-2 in September and 23-25 since the All-Star break.

Related stories on the Chicago White Sox