White Sox vs. Blue Jays Lineup: Second Half Begins, Best Lineup of the Season? More
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After the All-Star break, the Chicago White Sox will move into the second half of the 2026 season with high expectations. Against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, they might have put together their best lineup of the season.
The White Sox swept the Blue Jays earlier this season at Rate Field, and they would love the same outcome on the road.
Game Info
Who: Chicago White Sox (50-45) vs. Toronto Blue Jays (45-51)
Where: Rogers Centre
When: 6:15 CT
Watch: Apple TV
Listen: ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM
Note that this will be Chicago's first nationally televised game of the season, exclusively on Apple TV. CHSN or the MLB app will not carry the game.
Chicago White Sox Lineup
1. Sam Antonacci, LF
2. Munetaka Murakami, 1B
3. Miguel Vargas, 3B
4. Colson Montgomery, SS
5. Andrew Benintendi, DH
6. Kyle Teel, C
7. Braden Montgomery, RF
8. Tristan Peters, CF
9. Chase Meidroth, 2B
This, as I said before, might be the best White Sox lineup so far this year. With Munetaka Murakami finally healthy, this lineup feels complete. Sam Antonacci will lead off as he always does against a right-hander. Murakami and fellow All-Star Miguel Vargas will follow.
Where the lineup may get interesting to fans is Colson Montgomery at cleanup. While the strikeouts have been high, he has the elite power to make up for it. Fans may point out his .180 average with runners in scoring position. However, 28 of his 53 runs driven in are with RISP.
Toronto Blue Jays Lineup
1. Ernie Clement, SS
2. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B
3. Kazuma Okamoto, 3B
4. George Springer, LF
5. Alejandro Kirk, C
6. Daulton Varsho, CF
7. Brandon Valenzuela, DH
8. Luis Urías, 2B
9. Myles Straw, RF
Of everyone in this lineup, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is always the one you have to watch closely. While he's having a down year, Guerrero does have a home run against White Sox starter Anthony Kay in his career.
We'll see if he comes out of the All-Star break well-rested and fresh. Meanwhile, the roof will be closed at Rogers Centre due to high air pollution.
On The Mound...
Chicago White Sox - Anthony Kay, LHP
Anthony Kay has struggled in his last seven starts, pitching to a 5.06 ERA during that time. In his last start, he pitched 5.1 innings with two runs allowed.
Against this Blue Jays lineup in April, he pitched 4.1 innings with two runs allowed. He'll need to have a better outing against them for the White Sox to win this one.
Toronto Blue Jays - Spencer Miles
The Blue Jays will be trotting out a reliever, Spencer Miles, for this game. In 26 appearances this season, Miles has a 2.85 ERA in 60 innings. In his three starts this year, he's pitched a combined 10 innings, so don't expect him to go far into this one.
The White Sox will look to start the second half off with a bang and make another statement against these Blue Jays.
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Matthew Singer is a contributor for White Sox on SI. Before joining SI in 2026, he worked for Heavy as an MLB contributor and Cubs on SI. Singer has a master's degree in sports journalism from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. He loves sports more than anything in the world.