White Sox vs. Pirates Lineup: Hagen Smith's First Career Start, No Kyle Teel, More
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After a crushing loss that clinched the series in favor of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Chicago White Sox will look to salvage the series with another bullpen game.
Game Info
Who: Chicago White Sox (75-70) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (73-73)
Where: Rate Field
When: 6:40 CT
Watch: CHSN
Listen: ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM, 107.9 La Ley
Chicago White Sox Lineup
1. Sam Antonacci, LF
2. Miguel Vargas, 3B
3. Munetaka Murakami, 1B
4. Andrew Benintendi, DH
5. Colson Montgomery, SS
6. Braden Montgomery, RF
7. Chase Meidroth, 2B
8. Tristan Peters, CF
9. Jake Rogers, C
The White Sox will roll with their usual lefty-heavy lineup against right-hander Jared Jones. Sam Antonacci will lead off, with Miguel Vargas and Munetaka Murakami behind him, per usual. After a prolific August, Vargas has cooled down considerably in September with a .214/.241/.321 slash line in his last seven games. As for Murakami, he homered on Wednesday, but is still striking out at a horrific rate.
Colson Montgomery, after getting out of a slump of his own, is struggling once again with a .074/.138/.296 slash line in his last seven games. His only two hits during that time period have been home runs, and he has struck out 14 times in 27 at-bats.
It's mystifying that Tristan Peters is still batting eighth at this juncture in the season, especially considering how well he's playing. In his last seven games, he is slashing .391/.417/.609 with four runs scored. Jake Rogers will be behind the dish instead of Kyle Teel, who has impressed in his last few games.
Pittsburgh Pirates Lineup
1. Konnor Griffin, DH
2. Oneil Cruz, CF
3. Bryan Reynolds, LF
4. Nick Gonzales, 3B
5. Brandon Lowe, 2B
6. Rafael Flores Jr., C
7. Jake Mangum, RF
8. Spencer Horwitz, 1B
9. Jared Triolo, SS
On The Mound...
Chicago White Sox - Hagen Smith, LHP
Rookie standout Hagen Smith will make his first major league start on Thursday, although it's unclear if he's opening or if he'll go multiple innings. One thing that is clear, however, is that the White Sox will once again have a bullpen day amid fatigue for starters. Smith has been nothing short of sensational, with a 0.56 ERA in his first 10 major league appearances (16 innings). The former first-round pick has struck out 23 batters and walked 10.
Pittsburgh Pirates - Jared Jones, RHP
Jared Jones has struggled to stay healthy this season. However, in 17 starts, he simply hasn't been all that great. In just 78.2 innings, Jones has a 4.46 ERA with 92 strikeouts and 28 walks. He has been plagued by the home run ball with 12 in limited innings. He has a 5.51 ERA in his last seven starts. With that said, his last start against the Los Angeles Angels saw him go six shutout innings. The White Sox will have to put together better at-bats against Jones than they have against the rest of this Pirates staff to win this one.
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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.