Chicago White Sox starter Davis Martin was one out away from escaping a first-and-third jam in the first inning Sunday without allowing a run.
But Randy Arozarena drove in a run with a single to center field, giving the Seattle Mariners an early lead. And they threatened for more when the ball got away from Tristan Peters, allowing Josh Naylor to move up to third and Arozarena to advance to second.
Martin struck out Luke Raley to avoid more damage, then settled into a groove. While he didn’t factor in the decision in the 2-1 Sox victory at Rate Field, Martin’s ability to bounce back after a first inning filled with traffic set a tone.
“The pregame bullpen wasn’t very crisp, and it kind of carried into the first inning,” Martin said. “Had some hard conversations with (pitching coach Zach) Bove in the dugout and made some mechanical adjustments and went out and attacked the zone.”
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Martin allowed one run on three hits with nine strikeouts and two walks in six innings, lowering his ERA to 1.62 — the second-best in the majors.
“It’s just having the mentality that it’s all they get right there,” catcher Drew Romo said of Martin’s outing after the first. “He locked in and executed his pitches well and had a good plan. He did a great job.”
Martin got back on track with first-pitch strikes.
“It was just being super quick in my delivery, trying to pick at the zone in the first inning, trying to be super fine versus just blitzing the zone with as many pitches as we could,” Martin said. “Started settling in, started getting strike one. And once you get strike one, everything followed suit.”
Martin’s 1.62 ERA trails only New York Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler’s 1.35.
“Davis is the longest-tenured White Sox and has seen some stuff — the good and the bad — and taken on a leadership role,” bench coach Walker McKinven said before Sunday’s game. “Another exceptional human being that guys look up to.
“He’s a very confident player just because he’s been through it now. He knows exactly what he wants to do. He knows what it takes for him to be successful personally. And so watching him grow even further this season into a leadership role has been pretty cool.
“As we get younger guys up here, as we get new pitchers into the organization, Davis is kind of our rock on our pitching staff. The confidence that he’s pitching with is awesome to see. And others can take from it for sure.”
Martin took something Sunday from his conversation with Bove.
“He really does a good job of holding me accountable and seeing stuff,” Martin said. “If we’re sluggish, he almost challenges me on top of that. It’s just stuff that you need to hear at the right time. It was a good coaching spot for him.
“He’s been great, just from a game-planning perspective, from what you need to hear at the right time, constantly pushing you, challenging you to be better than yourself. Everything you ask for in a pitching coach.”
White Sox starting pitcher Davis Martin kneels to speak to his son Doak before a game against the Mariners on Sunday, May 10, 2026, at Rate Field. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)
Relievers Sean Newcomb, Bryan Hudson and Seranthony Domínguez each pitched one scoreless inning after Martin exited, and the offense rallied with two runs in the eighth to win two of three in the series. Martin said it was another example of everyone contributing.
“From a pitching standpoint, you’re just like, ‘Pass the baton,’” Martin said. “Someone struggles, the next guys pick them up. And from an offensive perspective, a perfect example (in the eighth Sunday). Mune (Munetaka Murakami) obviously wants to be the guy and they intentionally walk him, and (Miguel) Vargas does the job (with the go-ahead sacrifice fly).
“It’s one of those things where it’s almost being expected that the next guy is going to do what needs to be done. If everything is going well, that guy just comes in and follows suit. It’s a constant challenge, a constant competition between each other in a healthy way.”