While the Cubs later pulled away for the blowout win, the second inning served as a turning point.<\/p>\n
The Sox led 2-0, but the Cubs had runners on second and third with one out.\u00a0Mois\u00e9s Ballesteros<\/a> hit a high chopper to first. With the infield in, Andrew Vaughn elected to throw to the plate.<\/p>\n Michael Busch got a great jump off third and made an equally impressive headfirst slide at the plate to avoid the tag from catcher Matt Thaiss.<\/p>\n \u201cSick, Buschy swam on him,\u201d Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said of the slide. \u201cThat was awesome. I mean, that\u2019s creating right there. That\u2019s the little extra stuff that you can\u2019t practice.<\/p>\n \u201cCubs fans have seen that before with their old shortstop (Javier B\u00e1ez). That was really cool. I wasn\u2019t surprised to see that out of Buschy. Buschy\u2019s an athlete, but that was a sick slide for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n Venable said of the sequence: \u201c(Vaughn) right there, trying to make a play. Infield in, that kind of sets the intention that we want to come home there. At the same time, we\u2019ll take an out there.\u201d<\/p>\n Game 1 photos: Cubs take City Series opener at Wrigley Field<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n Smith went back to work with the lead cut to 2-1.\u00a0With runners now on the corners, the Sox kept the infield in.<\/p>\n Nico Hoerner hit a grounder to shortstop Chase Meidroth, who made a strong throw to the plate. But Thaiss dropped the ball and Carson Kelly scored, tying the game at 2.<\/p>\n \u201cThat kind of changed the outcome there a little bit,\u201d Thaiss said. \u201cShane was throwing well. It sucks that we didn\u2019t back him up today. I\u2019ve got to make that play too. It kind of spiraled from there.\u201d<\/p>\n The Cubs took advantage of the extra opportunities later in the inning when Crow-Armstrong hit a three-run home run<\/a>. Seiya Suzuki added an RBI double.<\/p>\n And just like that, the Sox went from leading 2-0 to trailing 6-2.<\/p>\n Of the six runs Smith surrendered in the inning, only one was earned. That was all the damage against Smith, who pitched five innings.<\/p>\n \u201cMy job is to pick up the infield when stuff doesn\u2019t go their way,\u201d Smith said. \u201cMy job is to make pitches. What happens when the ball\u2019s in play is not entirely up to me. Just got to keep making pitches for those guys.\u201d<\/p>\n The Sox never rebounded despite a four-hit day from Miguel Vargas<\/a>. The third baseman hit two home runs and drove in three.<\/p>\n![\"White](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1747444157_379_CTC-L-cubs-sox005_229319270.jpg\")
White Sox starting pitcher Shane Smith walks to the dugout after a rough second inning against the Cubs on May 16, 2025, at Wrigley Field. (Chris Sweda\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n