Will Venable wanted his struggling White Sox offense to be more aggressive. His group entered Wednesday with the worst batting average in the American League (.220), slugging percentage (.341), and runs scored (192).
While runs have been hard to come by, White Sox hitters have shown more patience at the plate, ranking 16th in the MLB with 181 walks, which is a vast improvement from last season. Now the offense is inching ever closer to league average.
“Walks are great. When they’re not throwing strikes, your ability to take those 90 feet, set up the guy behind you, that’s what we want,” newly hired White Sox director of hitting Ryan Fuller told CHSN’s Chuck Garfein. “We talk about swing decisions. Understanding how your game plan blends into what’s going to happen in the game, where you're trying to dominate in the zone, where you’re going to give up and to see these guys make improvements at the big league level with their swing decisions, it’s something that doesn’t always happen.
Now, with several veterans returning to the lineup after being plagued by injury issues early in the season, the White Sox lineup is inching ever closer to league average.
According to MLB.com, Venable’s message to the team was simple: put the ball in play. The offense responded emphatically on Wednesday, tallying 12 hits in a 9-4 win over the Mets to avoid a series sweep.
An Offensive Breakthrough Against the Mets
Andrew Benintendi and Mike Tauchman spearheaded the offensive surge. Benintendi drove in four runs with a three-hit performance, falling just a triple short of the cycle. Tauchman contributed three runs on two hits, highlighted by a two-run double in the second inning.
“The Mets are a team that has World Series aspirations. We played them tight in all three games,” Tauchman told MLB.com after the game. “I thought we had chances to win all three games. So getting that win today feels good on a getaway day. We just consistently put pressure on them.”
Benintendi has shown glimpses of the talent that earned him an All-Star nod with the Kansas City Royals in 2022, though inconsistency at the plate has plagued him since. Now in the third year of his five-year, $75 million contract—the richest in franchise history—Benintendi has openly acknowledged his struggles this season. However, he believes he’s beginning to rediscover his swing and regain his form.
“I’m up there trying to figure it out, swinging at bad pitches, chasing a little more than I like to,” Benintendi told reporters on Wednesday. “I’m not panicking. I’m trying to get up there and see the ball, hit the ball. Obviously results are nice to have, but there is a feel I found in my first at-bat against Waddell. It kind of took me back to 2021. So I’ll try to hold on to that as long as I can. But in the end, I just try to hit the ball hard and more consistent.
Making Strides with Power and Consistency
Fuller has been a revelation for the offense. Not only is the team walking more, several players have also made huge strides from last season.
None have been bigger than Miguel Vargas, who added 20 pounds of muscle over the offseason and made an in-season adjustment to his stance with the help of hitting coach Marcus Thames, which has paid dividends.
On April 22, Vargas owned a slash line of .139/.236/.203 with no homers. Since tweaking his hand placement, Vargas has tallied eight homers while slashing .312/.372/.578.
Lenyn Sosa has also been on a tear in recent weeks. On Wednesday, he hit an RBI double in the third inning.
In his last 15 games, he is slashing .340/.352/.528 with seven RBIs and a pair of homers. While he currently owns a pedestrian .696 OPS, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. Sosa has been hitting the ball hard all season and is finally being rewarded. Sosa’s .282 expected batting average ranks him in the top 21 percent of MLB hitters, while his 91 mph average exit velocity places him in the top third of the league.
The key to Sosa’s success has been his ability to consistently barrel the ball. His 41.2% sweet spot rate—a metric that measures how often a player’s batted balls fall within the optimal launch angle range of 8 to 32 degrees—has been a major factor. The more frequently a hitter can find the sweet spot, the greater the likelihood of generating distance and power.
A Lineup on the Rise
Wednesday’s White Sox lineup featured nine players with an average OPS of .706, slightly above the current American League average of .702.
However, Luis Robert Jr. was not in the lineup. The center fielder has struggled this season, batting just .191 with a .586 OPS. While Robert Jr. showcased All-Star potential in 2023—when he blasted 38 homers and drove in 80 runs, he has faced challenges in both 2024 and 2025, struggling to regain his elite form.
Despite Robert's struggles, the White Sox lineup has benefited from getting players such as Benintendi, Tauchman, and Austin Slater back in the fold. Additionally, it has been energized by contributions from some of the organization’s top prospects.
Edgar Quero and Chase Meidroth, both in the lineup against the Mets on Wednesday, have been revelations since their call-ups to the majors. Meidroth has served as a table setter, batting .286 with 34 hits and eight stolen bases on the season. Meanwhile, Quero is hitting .255 with a .342 OBP.
The White Sox offense has demonstrated the ability to score in bursts, but they are often hampered by extended dry spells at the plate. However, with a young core now bolstered by the return of veteran hitters, those struggles with consistency should improve.
While the overall numbers might not fully reflect it yet, the White Sox offense is gradually beginning to take shape as a competitive unit.
