White Sox Win First of 2026 Thanks to Another Grand Slam & A Better Bullpen Showing

On the road against the 3-0 Miami Marlins, the Chicago White Sox were in control for the majority of the night. The 9-4 victory was easily their most well-rounded performance of the season, and it featured a couple of big-time highlight plays.

Who said the White Sox can't be fun!?

The Miguel Vargas Game

Coming off a two-hit day, manager Will Venable gave Miguel Vargas a taste of the lead-off spot for the first time this season. And he sure made the most of it! While the game may have started with a pop-out on the very first pitch of the night, Vargas did some damage at the top of the third. With Everson Pereira standing on third, the infielder hit a line drive just over the top of Miami shortstop Otto Lopez to bring in the first run of the game.

Thanks to an Austin Hays bomb to batters later, Vargas would also get rewarded with a trip of his own around the bases. But that wasn't his only one. An inning later, Vargas had one of the best moments of his White Sox career. Tristan Peters, Pereira, and Luisangel Acuña each found their way on base against Miami's Chris Paddack. Vargas then drew a 3-1 count against the shaken-up righty, leading to a change-up that dropped right into the middle of the zone.

The rest is White Sox history ... literally!

Miguel Vargas' first homer of the season is a GRAND SLAM 🤯 pic.twitter.com/hFeKFoAYGC
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) March 30, 2026

The 402-foot home run left the ballpark with a 105.5 exit velocity. Vargas knew it was gone the moment it left the bat, giving the White Sox their second grand slam in as many games. This is now the first time since 2006 that the franchise has hit grand slams in back-to-back games, per Chris Garfien.

Vargas still wasn't done! He would add one more RBI to the board with a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning. The run would represent the last of the night for the White Sox, putting them up 9-3.

At the end of the day, it was a big game from a player whose role felt a bit undefined coming into the 2026 season. As well as Vargas played in 2025, the White Sox are flush with infield talent who could make a run at his plating time. However, if Vargas continues to look this comfortable at the plate, the White Sox will have to ensure he remains a key fixture in the lineup.

Luisangel Acuña Flashes His Speed

The White Sox made clear that they have high hopes for Luisangel Acuña. The 24-year-old was acquired in the Luis Roberts Jr. trade with the New York Mets and is expected to play several roles for the team this season. We've already seen him start in center field on Opening Day before sliding in at shortstop twice.

Acuña's athleticism is undeniable, but the question has always been whether or not he can find consistency at the plate. He had a fantastic winter league and followed that up with a strong spring training that saw him go .404 at the plate with 18 hits and only six strikeouts. However, the team is still waiting for that contact to translate, as he's mustered only a single hit over his first three outings.

With that said, Acuña still found a way to make a positive impact in the team's first win of the season, which speaks to the Sox' faith. After drawing a walk in the sixth, he proceeded to steal two bases in the blink of an eye. Vargas then sent a fly ball to mid-right field, which Owen Caissie snagged and sent flying to home plate. Acuña won the battle, though, sliding right past the tag in epic fashion.

This is exactly what the Sox want to see.

Acuña: "you gotta be quicker than that" pic.twitter.com/swz2YNnBEO
— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) March 31, 2026

The Power is Real

The White Sox' first four games have left a lot to be desired, but the bats have at least shown some serious signs of life over the last couple of games. The team has now put up at least 9 hits and 7 runs in back-to-back performances. Even more encouraging, a good chunk of those runs have come because of this new lineup's ability to hit deep.

Six different White Sox players have already hit a home run. Munetaka Murakami's streak may have come to an end on Monday night, but both Miguel Vargas and Austin Hays went yard. Hays' three-run blast came in the top of the third inning and represented his first in a White Sox uniform. The ball hugged the right field line and just landed fair.

Overall, the White Sox now have eight home runs on the board this season, which puts them just behind the Los Angeles Angels for the league lead (and the Angels have played one more game). If part of the goal for this season was to simply be more exciting, I think it's safe to say they're accomplishing that early on!

Stay fair. IT WILL ❗️ pic.twitter.com/cMZwl8mN2D
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) March 30, 2026

The Pitching Finally Does Enough

While there was plenty not to like in the White Sox' opening series against the Milwaukee Brewers, their pitching from top to bottom was No. 1 on the list. Anthony Kay was the best of the three starters, giving up just two earned runs in his 4.2 innings pitched. However, the bullpen came into that game and blew it in painstaking fashion, allowing the Brewers to put up seven runs. The performance made the bullpen responsible for 19 of the 29 runs given up by Chicago over its first three games.

Tonight was far from perfect, but there is no question that they looked more comfortable against the lesser-experienced Marlins. Davis Martin managed to limit the damage with only three earned runs and six strikeouts in his 5.0 innings of action. Command was a bit of an issue for him, but he deserves a tip of the cap for giving his teammates a lead to hang on to.

Will Venable proceeded to go with only Sean Newcomb and Jordan Hicks the rest of the way. Newcomb would let up one more run but strike out five, while Hicks avoided any major drama and finished out the game with a pop out, four-pitch strikeout, and a routine ground out.

All things considered, this looks a lot more like the steady bullpen play we expected from this group coming into the season. Let's see if they can build on the momentum with two more against this Miami squad.