ANAHEIM, Calif. — It wasn’t the ideal beginning for Chicago White Sox pitcher Shane Smith in his return from the injured list Friday against the Los Angeles Angels.

Pitching for the first time since July 11 — excluding the two batters he faced in the All-Star Game on July 15 — Smith walked Zach Neto, surrendered a single to Nolan Schanuel and walked Taylor Ward.

That loaded the bases with no outs for Jo Adell. On the second pitch of that showdown, catcher Edgar Quero fired to third and picked off Neto, with Josh Rojas applying the tag.

Smith eventually struck out Adell, but Yoán Moncada walked to load the bases again. He then went to a full count against Logan O’Hoppe before getting the Angels catcher to ground out to third. Smith threw 35 pitches in the first, only 15 strikes, but somehow got out of it without allowing a run.

The Sox received instant offense in the second with solo home runs by Andrew Benintendi and Lenyn Sosa on the way to a 6-3 victory in front of 29,937 at Angel Stadium. Colson Montgomery and Rojas added solo homers in the sixth and ninth, respectively, as the Sox won their 41st game, matching last year’s win total.

Smith found some consistency after the first, allowing two runs on two hits with four strikeouts and four walks in 4 1/3 innings after being reinstated from the injured list earlier Friday. He missed time with a left ankle sprain.

Jordan Leasure struck out the first four batters he faced in relief of Smith and collected the victory.

The Sox (41-69) immediately gained momentum after the shaky first when Benintendi led off the second with a home run. Sosa homered with one out.

Miguel Vargas singled and scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Luis Robert Jr. in the fourth to make it 3-0. Gustavo Campero hit a two-run homer with one out in the fifth, cutting the Sox lead to 3-2.

Montgomery answered with his solo homer in the sixth, a 433-foot blast that was his sixth of the season.

Montgomery was involved in a game-saving play in the seventh. The Sox led 4-3 with two outs when Schanuel singled to right with runners on first and second.

As Travis d’Arnaud tried to score, Campero raced from first to third. Right fielder Mike Tauchman made a great relay throw to the shortstop Montgomery, who fired to third and got Campero before d’Arnaud touched the plate.

The Sox added an insurance run in the eighth. Robert singled, stole second and scored on a single by Sosa. Rojas led off the ninth with a home run for more cushion.

Originally Published: August 1, 2025 at 11:43 PM CDT