ARLINGTON, Texas — The White Sox passed a major test out of the All-Star break with two straight road series wins, no small feat for a team that went 19-28 while traveling during the first half of the season.
They did it with some long ball courtesy of Sam Antonacci and Colson Montgomery while taking two out of three in Toronto.
They did it with some small ball in Texas, with Chase Meidroth and Andrew Benintendi combining for six singles driving in all their runs in a 4-2 rubber-match win at Texas.
They got big-time pitching performances from Davis Martin and rising ace Sean Burke, plus a bullpen that’s suddenly dealing shutdown stuff behind Grant Taylor, Bryan Hudson and a revitalized Jordan Hicks.
And it’s hard not to wonder how it all could look for the stunning first-place Sox if Munetaka Murakami can regain his epically powerful first-half form.
The rookie sensation went 4-for-19 with two doubles, seven walks and eight strikeouts during his first road trip since returning from the hamstring injury that derailed the spring dinger show that still landed him spots in the Home Run Derby and All-Star Game.
Murakami gave one a ride Wednesday night on a deep flyout at Globe Life Field, but he returned to Chicago still in search of his 21st home run, which would be his first since May 27. He’s confident it’s coming, even as the league looks for new ways to attack his prodigious swing.
“I think overall it’s getting better,” Murakami said via interpreter Kenzo Yagi. “I’ve been seeing the ball very clearly and I’m getting good at-bats. There are different pitchers coming in each and every day with different varieties of pitches. It’s always a learning curve on that as well.”
Manager Will Venable said he saw progress in his first baseman’s approach as Murakami got back in the swing of things on the road.
“There was just more intent to be ready earlier,” Venable said. “Got the barrel to some balls. Didn’t hit any out, but there were some really good swings in there.
“His presence is felt in the dugout, in the clubhouse and obviously on the field,” Venable added. “I think we saw in his absence that our group was still able to score a lot of runs. … The positive things we’re doing offensively are certainly driven by Mune, but not all driven by Mune. So even when he’s not out there hitting homers every day, we find ways to score runs, because we’re doing it really throughout the lineup.”
The Sox went 17-18 during the six weeks Murakami missed with a hamstring injury. They’ve gone 7-2 since he returned, behind a balanced attack getting steady production from Miguel Vargas (four doubles on the road trip with two RBI), Montgomery (team-leading 24 homers) and a rotating cast of nightly contributors.
“I think our offense is very multi-faceted,” Meidroth said after his 4-for-4 night Wednesday. “There are many ways to win a baseball game, which makes this team and lineup really special. … It’s still July. Gotta take care of business.”
Murakami was just pleased to return to a squad defying the odds by sitting in first place with under two weeks remaining before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
“As a team we are in a good condition,” he said. “Trying to win as much as possible so we can get first in the division, and hopefully in the World Series.
“We are going into games with good preparation. We have to continue to keep this up and the wins will come along,” Murakami said. “The whole team and atmosphere is concentrated on each and every single game like that. I think it shows out there every single day. … We just have to keep continuing this grinding every single day and keep that success going.”
On deck
ASTROS AT SOX
Friday: Spencer Arrighetti (7-5, 4.34 ERA) vs. Davis Martin (9-5, 3.31), 6:40 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.
Saturday: Hunter Brown (1-1, 4.05) vs. Sean Burke (7-4, 3.20) 6:10 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.
Sunday: Ronel Blanco (0-0, 7.71) vs. Erick Fedde (5-6, 4.16), 1:10 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.