White Sox activate Davis Martin from injured list ahead of his Wednesday night start against the Astros

HOUSTON — Davis Martin is scheduled to start the third game of a four-game set against the Astros, so the White Sox had just the small bit of housekeeping of actually adding him to the roster.

Martin was officially activated from the injured list on Wednesday afternoon, after missing roughly three weeks for a blister on his middle finger. Prospect right-hander Tanner McDougal, still in the throes of mechanical adjustments to his delivery, was optioned back to Triple-A Charlotte after a single day on the active roster. McDougal did not pitch in Tuesday’s 5-1 victory in Houston.

For the first two months of 2026, the 29-year-old Martin pitched to a 2.00 ERA with a 27% strikeout rate and looked bound for the All-Star Game. Since June 1, he has a 7.06 ERA and is striking out just 15% of hitters. His last start in the majors saw Martin allow four runs (three earned) and two homers in just two innings against the light-hitting Cincinnati Reds, before being ejected for a wildly misfired pitch that clipped first baseman Sal Stewart in the helmet.

“I’m really confident I’m going to find it and I’m going to be a key piece down the stretch,” Martin said after that game.

Now, Martin is coming off an efficient five innings of scoreless baseball in his lone Triple-A rehab start last week, in which he allowed just two baserunners and struck out five. Martin has been traveling with the team in anticipation of his return to the rotation, and expressed confidence he was able to use his time off as a mechanical and mental reset.

The White Sox rotation sorely needs a refurbished version of Martin. With Sean Burke getting pulled after a career-high 104 pitches in 5⅔ scoreless innings in Tuesday’s 5-1 victory, the Sox have not enjoyed a quality start (six innings or more, three earned runs or less) since Anthony Kay in their Aug. 20 loss to the Braves.