KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Bigger names might’ve been expected to be leading the White Sox in home runs in the dog days of August.
But entering the home stretch of the season, it’s Lenyn Sosa, who’s slugging away at the heart of the order.
Sosa smacked his team-leading 15th homer Friday in the Sox’ loss to the Royals. It was the fifth homer of a torrid month at the plate for Sosa, who has vaulted past Luis Robert Jr., Miguel Vargas and Andrew Benintendi as the team’s top slugger.
Sosa might not hold the Sox’ home-run lead for long, especially with rookie sensation Colson Montgomery swatting 10 dingers since his call-up July 4.
But his surprisingly consistent offensive prowess in his first full major-league season could keep him around for the next phase of the Sox’ rebuild.
“His bat is dangerous on good pitches,” manager Will Venable said.
Once considered a prospective contributor to the Sox’ last contending window alongside Eloy Jimenez, Tim Anderson and Yoan Moncada, Sosa is one of the last vestiges of that disappointing era now slotting into general manager Chris Getz’s overhaul.
While his shaky infield defense and sometimes questionable baserunning decisions have frustrated Sox fans since he made his debut in 2022, Sosa has put it together at the plate with a .274/.303/.439 hitting line, 49 RBI — another team high — and 16 doubles.
“It means a lot,” Sosa said. “We prepare every year to improve and surpass what we did the year before. When you’re able to do that, it means all the work that you’ve been putting into your preparation, your routine, is paying off.”
Because Sosa has lingered on the roster for four years, it’s easy to forget he’s only 25 and still figuring things out.
“It has a lot to do with experience; you’re gaining experience every year, every day,” said Sosa, who added that he’s striving “to be stronger mentally.”
His ascent as one of the Sox’ biggest offensive producers could reflect just how lifeless the bats were earlier in the season, but that hasn’t been the case in the second half.
The Sox’ 43 homers since the All-Star break were tied for the most in the majors entering Saturday, and their 131 runs were the fourth-most.
Sosa has been a huge contributor with an .854 OPS and 18 RBI. He also has thrived under pressure, with a major-league-high 19 hits on 0-2 pitches.
“He always gets an ‘A’ swing off, even when he’s maybe expanding,” Venable said. “It’s still just a well-balanced swing where he has the opportunity to do damage.”
Now it’s a question of how to keep Sosa’s bat in the order along with more defined core players of the rebuild. With the returns of Vargas and infielder Chase Meidroth from the injured list to go along with Montgomery and the arrival of Curtis Mead, it’s suddenly a crowded infield situation for Venable to sort out.
Sosa is a natural second baseman who has slotted in at first and third, but he’s a liability across the field with 10 errors. And as the designated hitter, he boxes out one promising rookie catcher or another, as Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero continue to develop.
“We’re still very much figuring out how this group is going to work together,” Venable said.
“It’s great to have everybody healthy, and now we’ve got to play and kind of figure each other out again.”
Sosa has figured out his own approach, which has him on pace to top 20 homers. But he’s not counting.
“I just try to hit the ball hard,” he said.