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Astros Sweep Sox
Astros Sweep Sox at Rate Field; Chicago Skids to 13–21
The White Sox came home hoping their new additions could spark a turnaround. Instead, Houston rolled through the South Side, taking all three games and out-scoring Chicago 21–7 to drop the Sox to 13–21 on the season while the Astros climbed to 17–16.
Game 1 – Valdez bends, not breaks in 5–3 opener
Houston punched first on Friday and never really gave the lead back.
Isaac Paredes set the tone with a first-inning solo shot off Mike Vasil.
The knockout blow came in the second: Brendan Rodgers ripped a double, Jeremy Peña followed with a triple, and Jake Meyers added another triple as Houston raced to a 4–0 lead.
Vasil settled in and got through 5.1 innings (4 ER, 5 K), giving the Sox a chance. They finally broke through in the sixth:
Walks to Josh Rojas and Chase Meidroth, a Nick Maton single, and free passes to Miguel Vargas set the table.
Lenyn Sosa and rookie catcher Edgar Quero each delivered RBI singles, and Andrew Vaughn added a sac fly to cut the deficit to 4–3.
The Astros answered in the seventh on a Meyers single, Taylor Trammell knock and Yainer Díaz sac fly for the insurance run that stuck. Chicago brought the tying run to the plate multiple times late but couldn’t solve the Houston bullpen trio of Brazoban–Sousa–Hader.
Game 2 – Márquez shines, bullpen implodes in 7–2 loss
Saturday felt like the one that got away.
Newly-acquired right-hander Germán Márquez looked every bit like a rotation stabilizer in his White Sox debut, carving Houston for 6.2 innings of two-run ball (8 K) and leaving in a tight 2–1 game.
The Sox offense, though, remained stuck in the mud against lefty Brandon Walter, who carried a shutout into the sixth. Chicago’s only damage against him:
A leadoff double from Josh Rojas, followed by productive outs from Meidroth and Vaughn to finally push across a run.
Still trailing 2–1 in the ninth, the bullpen came apart:
José Altuve opened the frame with a solo homer off Bryse Wilson.
A single and double set up Peña’s RBI knock, and after a pitching change Jake Meyers unloaded a three-run homer to right, turning a one-run game into a 7–1 rout in a blink.
The Sox scratched out a cosmetic run in the ninth, but the damage—and the series—felt suddenly lopsided.
Game 3 – Schweitzer’s debut turns into another Houston rout
Sunday brought another fresh face: top left-hander Tyler Schweitzer making his MLB debut. Houston immediately welcomed him to the show.
Díaz tripled on the second pitch of the day and scored on an Altuve single.
An error and Díaz’s two-run homer in the second made it 3–0.
Christian Walker and Jeremy Peña helped push the lead to 5–0 by the third.
Schweitzer showed flashes (7 K in 4.2 IP) but paid for every mistake, leaving after 90 tough pitches and five runs (four earned).
On the other side, Tyler Ivey silenced the Chicago bats over 6.1 innings of one-run ball. The Sox didn’t score until the sixth, and by the time they broke through, Houston had already decided things with a four-run seventh off Tyler Gilbert:
Walker’s second homer of the day, a two-run shot, was the backbreaker.
Rodgers’ RBI double and Mitch Haniger’s RBI single capped another crooked frame.
Chicago added single runs in the seventh and eighth, but Houston cruised to a 9–2 win and the sweep.
Injury Hits, Reinforcements Arrive
The series came on the heels of major roster news:
CF Michael A. Taylor was moved to the 60-day IL with a fractured elbow, expected to sideline him roughly four months. His elite defense and speed are a big loss for a club already ranking near the bottom of the AL in run prevention.
Andrew Benintendi was activated from the IL and jumped straight back into the lineup in Sunday’s finale, giving the Sox a much-needed left-handed bat and some stability in left field.
On the pitching side, top prospect Hagen Smith earned a promotion to AAA Charlotte on May 5. With mid-90s heat and frontline stuff, he’s now just one step away and looms as a potential mid-season rotation option if the big-league staff continues to struggle.
Where the Sox Stand
After the sweep, Chicago sits at 13–21, buried in the AL Central standings, while Houston leaves town at 17–16 and trending up.
Big themes coming out of the series:
Run prevention issues: 21 runs allowed in three games, including late-inning blowups on Friday and Saturday, highlight a bullpen that’s being asked to cover high-leverage innings almost every night.
Offense too quiet: Seven total runs, with very little power, won’t win many series. The club continues to live on walks and singles without the extra-base thump to cash them in consistently.
New arms, new hope: Márquez’s debut and Schweitzer’s strikeout ability, plus Smith’s promotion, at least hint that the rotation picture could look different—and better—by mid-season.
Next up is a road trip to Kansas City, where the Sox will try to stop the skid, integrate their returning and rookie pieces, and finally turn competitive games into wins instead of “what-ifs.”
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