Game Day Preview: Shane Smith Faces Former Organization As White Sox Host Brewers

Shane Smith began his professional career in the Brewers' organization, but now he's excelling with the White Sox. Here's the game day preview, including the probable pitchers, lineups, roster news, TV and radio details, weather forecast and more.

Chicago White Sox pitcher Shane Smith (64) throws against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

CHICAGO – Rookie starting pitcher Shane Smith has been among the biggest positives 29 games into the White Sox season.

Since making his MLB debut, he's allowed three runs or fewer in all five starts, including two scoreless outings and a career-high seven strikeouts in his last start against the Twins. That's good for a 2.30 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP.

"When it’s his turn in the rotation," White Sox general manager Chris Getz said Tuesday. "I think we all look forward to that day."

Smith also represents one of the biggest wins since Getz was promoted in August of 2023. The White Sox selected Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in December's Rule 5 Draft from the Milwaukee Brewers organization, where he spent the previous three seasons as a minor leaguer.

In the Rule 5 Draft, teams are allowed to select players from other organizations who are not on their 40-man roster. It's designed to prevent teams from keeping players in the minor leagues when other teams would call them up. Smith takes the mound Wednesday for the White Sox against his former organization.

"Obviously it's a testament to Shane and his belief in himself. Every outing he's had he's put us in a position to win that game," Getz said. "For a guy that hasn't really pitched above Double-A – he had some innings in Triple-A – but to come here and pitch the way that he does, it just speaks to his ability and his confidence and also speaks to the group of players and staff here to support him. Shane is doing really well and we expect him to have a really productive, healthy season for us."

Here's more information on Wednesday's game.

How to watch White Sox vs. Brewers

• Who: Chicago White Sox (7-22) vs. Milwaukee Brewers (15-15)
• When: Wednesday, April 30 at 6:40 p.m. CT
• Where: Rate Field in Chicago, Ill.
• TV: Chicago Sports Network (CHSN). For more information on how to watch CHSN, CLICK HERE.
• Radio: ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM
• Betting information: The Brewers are favored on the money line at minus-164, and the White Sox money line odds are plus-138. On the run line, you can bet the White Sox plus-1.5 at minus-126 odds, and the Brewers minus-1.5 at plus-105 odds. The over/under is 7.5 runs, according to the FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Weather: At 6 p.m. CT in Chicago, the forecast is 55 degrees and cloudy with a 9% chance of rain and east-northeast winds at 10 mph. At 7 p.m., there's a 20% chance of rain, and there's a 13% chance of rain at 8 p.m., according to weather.com.

Lineups

White Sox

1. Joshua Palacios, RF
2. Luis Robert Jr., CF
3. Andrew Benintendi, LF
4. Andrew Vaughn, DH
5. Miguel Vargas, 1B
6. Matt Thaiss, C
7. Lenyn Sosa, 2B
8. Brooks Baldwin, SS
9. Gage Workman, 3B

Workman is in the starting lineup for the first time since the White Sox acquired him in a trade with the Cubs.

"We're going to find out. Obviously left-handed hitting guy, big athlete and that can do a lot of stuff on the field," White Sox manager Will Venable said of Workman. "We expect him to put a good at-bat together, to be able to steal a base, impact our offense and also a solid defender over there at third base. We're going to mix and match here and get the best out of our roster the best we can. And part of that will be seeing what Gage can do over at third base."

Brewers

1. Brice Turang, 2B
2. Jackson Chourio, CF
3. Christian Yelich, DH
4. William Contreras, C
5. Sal Frelick, RF
6. Rhys Hoskins, 1B
7. Jake Bauers, LF
8. Joey Ortiz, SS
9. Caleb Durbin, 3B

Starting pitchers

• White Sox RHP Shane Smith: 5 starts, 27.1 IP, 17 H, 7 ER, 9 BB, 22 K, 2.30 ERA, 0.95 WHIP.
• Brewers RHP Tobias Myers: 1 start, 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, 4.50 ERA, 2.00 WHIP

Roster news

• Prior to tonight’s game vs. Milwaukee, the Chicago White Sox returned LHP Fraser Ellard from his injury rehabilitation assignment at Class AAA Charlotte and reinstated him from the 15-day injured list. To make room for Ellard on the 26-man roster, the White Sox optioned left-hander Tyler Gilbert to Charlotte.

• The White Sox are sending No. 4 prospect Colson Montgomery to the team facility in Arizona to work on his swing. Montgomery is batting .149 in Triple-A with 43 strikeouts in 103 plate appearances. To read the full story with general manager Chris Getz's comments on the decision, CLICK HERE.

• Infielder Josh Rojas began rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Charlotte. He has not played this season due to a fractured toe. Getz said Tuesday that Rojas is "likely returning next week."

• Getz anticipates infielder Chase Meidroth returning to the lineup later this week. He's been on the injured list since April 29 with right thumb inflammation. Ranked No. 8 among White Sox prospects, Meidroth made his MLB debut April 11.

• On Tuesday, Getz estimated catcher Korey Lee (left ankle sprain) could return in two weeks. Mike Tauchman (right hamstring strain) and outfielder Austin Slater (right meniscus tear) could return in two or three weeks, according to Getz.

Managers

• Will Venable, White Sox: Venable, 42, is in his first season with the White Sox and first year as an MLB manager. He was previously an associate manager for the Texas Rangers from 2023-24 and on the coaching staffs for the Boston Red Sox from 2021-22 and Chicago Cubs from 2018-20. An outfielder during his playing days, Venable began his career with the San Diego Padres from 2008-15 and later played for the Texas Rangers in 2015 and Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016. He had a .249 batting average in 967 career games. Venable graduated from Princeton University, where he played baseball and basketball.
• Pat Murphy, Brewers: Murphy, 66, is in his second season as Milwaukee's manager. Guiding the Brewers to an NL Central division title and 93 wins, Murphy was named NL manager of the year. The Brewers lost to the Mets in the wild card round. He was previously the Brewers' bench coach from 2015-23 under manager Craig Counsell, who left to manage the Cubs. Murphy was the interim manager for the Padres for 96 games in 2015 after San Diego fired Bud Black. Murphy was Arizona State's head coach from 1995-2009, a run that included four College World Series appearances, four Pac-10 titles and a 629-284-1 record. He was also the Notre Dame head coach from 1988-94, going 318-116-1. A Syracuse, N.Y. native, Murphy attended Florida Atlantic University and played four minor league seasons.

Related stories on the Chicago White Sox

• LUIS ROBERT JR:.: White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. is off to a slow start in 2025. But he has four hits and two home runs in the last four games, and general manager Chris Getz thinks he's about to heat up. CLICK HERE

• BREWERS BEAT SOX: After back-to-back home runs by Andrew Benintendi and Luis Robert Jr. in the first inning, the White Sox mustered just two hits the rest of the game. Bryse Wilson took the loss with three earned runs. CLICK HERE

• GETZ ON ELKO, VAUGHN: Triple-A Charlotte Knights first baseman Tim Elko leads all minor leaguers with nine home runs. On Tuesday, White Sox general manager Chris Getz discussed his development. CLICK HERE

• MONTGOMERY TO ARIZONA: Colson Montgomery, ranked No. 4 among Chicago White Sox prospects, is going to Arizona to work on his swing. He has a .149 batting average in 23 games this season with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights. GM Chris Getz explained the decision. CLICK HERE