White Sox come out swinging after All-Star break in rout of Toronto

TORONTO — White Sox hitters picked up where they left off before the All-Star break, pounding the Blue Jays 12-4 on Friday to pull a half game ahead in the American League Central and match a season-high at six games over .500 (51-45).

Catcher Kyle Teel tagged an RBI double during a five-run second inning that saw Braden Montgomery and Chase Meidroth knock in two more, before Sam Antonacci’s two-run rainbow of a home run over the right-field wall.

Colson Montgomery cleared a loaded set of bases with a double in the fifth, and Braden Montgomery did the same with his first career triple in the seventh. Every Sox starter had a hit as they piled 12 on the last-place Jays.

Sox starter Anthony Kay labored through four innings, giving up two runs on two hits and three walks, with five strikeouts. He also hit his MLB-leading 17th and 18th batters of the year.

All-Star Miguel Vargas exited the game after getting plunked on the hand in the eighth.

No derby concerns

After Munetaka Murakami’s nine-homer outing failed to get him out of the first round of the Home Run Derby, the slugging rookie arrived in Toronto looking for his first dinger in game action since May 27, before the hamstring injury that kept him out for six weeks.

Manager Will Venable said he’s not worried about Murakami’s Derby action affecting the slugger’s form in the second half, brushing aside the common notion in many baseball circles that the free-swinging spectacle can throw hitters off their mechanics.

“I’m hoping that it helps Mune’s swing, after some time off, to be able to get some swings in,” Venable said. “And honestly, his stroke is a home run stroke anyways.”

Murakami’s 20 homers are still good for third on the team behind Colson Montgomery (23) and Miguel Vargas (21).

“He obviously did such a good job on the field, and such a good job in the clubhouse and the dugout,” Venable said. “He was so meaningful for us in the first half, and we expect him to be meaningful in the second half.”

Shelter from the smoke

The retractable Rogers Centre roof was closed for Friday’s series opener on an otherwise beautiful summer night due to the plumes of Canadian wildfire smoke that consumed Chicago and much of the continent this week.

“The smoke is a real concern,” Venable said. “Glad that it’s not a concern with the roof.”

With scoreboard-watching season in full swing, the smoke wiped out Cleveland’s home matchup with the Pirates, which was postponed due to air-quality concerns.

On the mend

The Sox sent outfielder Austin Hays out on a rehab assignment Friday on his way back from the calf strain that has sidelined him since early May.

Hays will be joined at Triple-A Charlotte this weekend by fellow outfielder Everson Pereira, who’s working his way back from the concussion he suffered on a painfully spectacular catch last month at Yankee Stadium. The Sox’ offseason additions have combined to play 33 games this season between stints on the injured list.

Meanwhile, Drew Thorpe, the prize of the Dylan Cease trade, was expected to start a rehab assignment with the Sox’ Arizona Complex League squad on his way back from Tommy John surgery in March 2025..

July 31 will mark two years since the last time Thorpe played for the Sox, who don’t line up to face Cease this weekend after his All-Star Game start for the American League.