Before Wednesday night, only two players in White Sox history had ever both caught and pitched in the same game. It was a quirky footnote the organization likely hoped would stay at two. But when you’re trailing by 11 runs, desperate times call for desperate measures.
The White Sox were officially eliminated from playoff contention after starter Aaron Civale was tagged for five runs over 4.2 innings. Things only got worse when Tyler Gilbert entered, allowing six more runs while recording just one out.
Reliever Mike Vasil cleaned up the mess out of the bullpen with two scoreless frames, but needed 32 pitches to get through them. With the game well out of reach at 11–1, manager Will Venable opted to save his bullpen arms for another day.
That’s when catcher Korey Lee, who wasn’t even in the starting lineup, got the call. Inserted in the seventh inning as a defensive replacement for Kyle Teel, Lee’s first plate appearance ended with a flyout to center. Moments later, he found himself 60 feet 6 inches away from his normal spot behind home plate, making his major-league pitching debut.
In doing so, Lee became the first White Sox player in more than a century to both catch and pitch in the same game. The only others to accomplish the rare feat were Frank Isbell and Sam Mertes, who each did it on September 28, 1902, in the second game of a doubleheader.
However, Lee, who has only ever appeared as a catcher in the majors, had no choice but to borrow a glove before making his unexpected pitching debut. In the eighth inning, he was sporting Colson Montgomery’s glove, who was out of action with left side soreness. By the ninth, he had switched to All-Star Shane Smith’s glove, and the change seemed to pay off. Lee tossed a scoreless frame to close out his night on the mound.
It was a respectable performance for Lee, who threw 17 of his 31 pitches for strikes. In two innings, he allowed one run on four hits, with a pair of walks.
After the game, Lee told reporters that catching keeps his arm in shape, but given the circumstances, he focused on keeping his delivery light and easy.“I grew up as a kid just playing baseball. That’s what it felt like,” Lee told MLB.com. “At the end of the day, it’s still really hard. Kudos to all the pitchers. Like I said, it’s just unfortunate I had to go in there because of the situation.”
