Luis Robert Jr. blooped a go-ahead, two-run single in the eighth inning among his two hits and three RBIs and Mike Tauchman homered to lift the Chicago White Sox to a 7-2 win against the visiting Kansas City Royals on Friday.
Chicago used a five-run eighth inning to break the game open and pick up its third win in four games, later capitalizing on a wild pitch and two errors.
Jordan Leasure (1-4) pitched a scoreless eighth to pick up the win. Losing pitcher Jonathan Bowlan (1-1) allowed five runs (three earned) and two hits and four walks in 1 1/3 innings.
Chicago opened the scoring on Robert’s RBI single in the second inning. Robert returned to the lineup after missing three straight games against Detroit — two for scheduled rest and another as a precaution after being struck in the head by a ball during batting practice.
White Sox right-hander Davis Martin struck out Jonathan India and Bobby Witt Jr. to start the third inning but encountered trouble soon enough. Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino connected on back-to-back homers to put the visitors ahead 2-1.
Garcia matched his career high by slugging his seventh home run of the season in his 224th at-bat. He accomplished the feat in 575 at-bats in 2024.
Pasquantino, meanwhile, extended his on-base streak to 22 games.
The White Sox tied the game in the fifth as Tauchman hit a solo shot against Royals righty Seth Lugo.
Andrew Benintendi had a pair of hits for the White Sox.
Catcher Kyle Teel, Chicago’s No. 2 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, batted sixth in his MLB debut.
Teel hit an opposite-field single to left to load the bases with one out in the fourth for his first career hit. Lugo escaped the jam by striking out Robert and Josh Rojas.
Teel caught Kansas City’s Drew Waters on an attempted steal of second base in the top of the inning.
Martin spaced two runs and five hits in six innings while striking out seven. Lugo yielded two runs and five hits in five innings with two walks and five strikeouts.
Witt and Waters had two hits apiece for the Royals.
Kansas City fell to 4-1 against Chicago this season.
–Field Level Media
