Monday, June 16

CHICAGO -- Shane Smith wants to be the pitcher, not a pitcher, when it comes to his work within the White Sox rotation. 

It’s a lofty goal for the 25-year-old rookie and top pick in the previous Rule 5 Draft, but he already has 12 outstanding starts on his resume to support that thought process. The right-hander has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of those 12 outings, entering his trip to the mound for Tuesday’s opener in Houston with a 2.45 ERA, as well as a chance to be selected as the White Sox All-Star representative for the 2025 edition in Atlanta. 

Smith is a thoughtful quote who puts meaning behind his statements. But he was briefly at a loss for words when asked about the All-Star possibility. 

“That would be … ,” Smith said during a Thursday conversation, continuing after a brief pause to consider the importance of the honor. “It would mean so many different things to me. It would be really special.” 

All-Star voting is underway, and of course pitchers are not on the All-Star ballot. The White Sox have other worthy candidates such as shortstop Chase Meidroth, right-handed reliever Mike Vasil and even third baseman/first baseman Miguel Vargas, who followed up a rough start with a torrid stretch over the last five weeks. 

But the White Sox also sit at 22 games under .500, which often means one representative at the Midsummer Classic. Smith has the best case across the entire first half to date, with his work being deserving aside from being the South Siders’ most prominent performer. 

“He’s been not just one of the best rookie pitchers in baseball, but one of the best pitchers in baseball this year,” said right-hander Sean Burke. “I don’t think there’s anybody else more deserving than him for that spot.” 

“If you just try to put your best foot forward each and every time you get the ball, good things can happen,” Smith said. “Being in that conversation is something I’m grateful for, but I won’t really believe it until I get any type of news. It’s not something that’s on my radar, but to be in that conversation in a group with the best in the league is incredible.” 

Through 62 1/3 innings, Smith has struck out 60 batters and walked 25, yielding just 46 hits (only four home runs).

His changeup was developed in the offseason and drew notice as soon as he arrived at Spring Training. During his last start against Detroit, the best team in baseball record-wise, his fastball velocity ticked up a bit early on and he made more effective usage of his curve. 

In the previous start against the Mets, Smith walked a career-high five over 3 2/3 innings. So, he was determined to attack the strike zone more forcefully when facing the Tigers. Those adjustments are all part of Smith’s quest to be the best and not just another guy doing his job. 

“I don’t want to just be talked about as being good,” Smith said. “I want to be in those conversations as a legitimate option or thought of in that way. So, just trying to be my personal best and live up to my personal potential is what I’m trying to do. 

“If you are just here to be like, ‘I want to do my thing and kind of just coast,’ it’s not what I think about personally. I want to do everything I possibly can to be the best I possibly can be. Whatever that looks like to the outside world and the league is outside of my control. If I can be my personal best, that’s all I’m really trying to do.” 

Regardless of the All-Star selection, Smith is more comfortable as a pitcher, as a Major Leaguer, than he was back in Spring Training. 

“Spring was a weird time where I was throwing the ball well, but you can never be too sure about what a team is thinking or an organization is thinking,” Smith said. “Now I’m just letting the on-field product do the talking or convincing for me.  

“Definitely feel more comfortable, especially with the guys and 12 starts in. It feels much more comfortable preparing for a start, being in the game … [when you] got guys on, you are just more comfortable in those situations. I’m happy, not satisfied. But happy, yeah, definitely.” 

Southpaw Hagen Smith, the White Sox No. 3 prospect (No. 27 overall) per MLB Pipeline, hopefully will be back on the mound for Double-A Birmingham by the end of June. Smith last pitched two scoreless innings on May 10, but was sent to the club’s Arizona complex to deal with some elbow soreness and for a biomechanical reset. The soreness quickly dissipated, and the White Sox are happy with Smith’s delivery adjustments. 

“It's been a tremendous opportunity to slow him down,” White Sox general manager Chris Getz said. “For any player who's getting into professional baseball, especially of his pedigree and his status, they want to get to the big leagues as quickly as they can.  

“He was very effective in regards to swing and miss. It was just a matter of being in the zone more consistently, and the reason why he was outside the zone more often than he has been in the past is delivery-related. We broke down some things and compared it to where he's been in the past, whether it's been with us or in college, and we feel very good about where he's at.” 

• The date of June 5 certainly was 24 hours chocked full of important news for the White Sox. It started early and never stopped. 

• I had dinner Thursday with a close high school friend, Steve Chanenson, and we talked about his wonderful mother, Claire, who constantly encouraged me when I was younger to work on television. I always think of her whenever I do a podcast or a TV appearance. It’s amazing how much a little encouragement from a joyful person helps and sticks with you. 

“I haven't seen consecutive home runs, or two home runs in a game, like that from Colson Montgomery, let alone the distance in which he struck them and the swings that he took.” -- Getz, on Montgomery’s two-homer effort on Thursday 

To subscribe to White Sox Beat, visit this page and mark "White Sox Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the White Sox or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2025 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.