Robert hoping homer is sign of shaking season-long struggles at plate

CHICAGO -- Luis Robert Jr. felt like his old self during a 4-1 White Sox loss to the Diamondbacks on Tuesday night at Rate Field, as the South Siders (25-55) dropped their sixth straight at home and fell to 30 under .500 for the first time this season.

Robert connected on a 1-0 pitch from Ryne Nelson with one out in the second to launch his eighth home run of the season, his second in the past five games and the 96th of his career, tying him with Ron Karkovice for 25th in franchise history. It came on a slider that caught far too much of the plate, which is a pitch Robert has been missing on this season.

“That’s what you want to do. Today, I felt as I used to feel in the past,” Robert said through interpreter Billy Russo. “It was good to be able to put the bat there to hit the ball and get that result. I think that was the part I’ve been missing this season.”

Factoring in Tuesday’s 1-for-4 showing, including a 350-foot flyout to center fielder Alek Thomas for the second out in the ninth, Robert still has a .185 average with a .583 OPS. It has been a physically healthy season for Robert, who played in his 72nd game, and that health has played out through excellent defense in center and 22 stolen bases -- ranking him second in the American League.

There always has been a belief from the 27-year-old Robert that good health would lead to the same high level of personal excellence he produced in 2023 -- one of the most complete all-time White Sox individual seasons. It makes the lack of results on offense all the more surprising and frustrating.

“Honestly, yes,” Robert said. “I thought being healthy was [going to make me] able to perform the way I did in 2023. But that's the way it is. I still keep working hard, and hopefully I'll get the results in the end."

“It's a hard game. It's a really hard game,” designated hitter Mike Tauchman said. “Everybody's probably gone through something like that: where they think left and the pitcher and catcher think right; they think hard and they think soft; they think up [and they think down]. Luis is a big part of our team. We all love Luis. Every single time he goes up to the plate, there's confidence in him from the guys that he's going to do something special."

Will that special performance from Robert continue to be with the White Sox, particularly after the July 31 Trade Deadline? It has been assumed the five-tool talent will be dealt prior to that date. Many thought Robert would be traded before the season began, but he remains the biggest trade chip in terms of a return for this current rebuild.

The White Sox owe Robert what’s left of his $15 million salary for the 2025 season, and they have $20 million team options in ‘26 and ‘27 with a $2 million buyout. General manager Chris Getz indicated pregame on Monday how Robert not only could be part of this team the rest of the current campaign but also into the future, extolling his on-field virtues.

For Robert, there wasn’t much focus beyond the present when asked about that chance postgame.

“Right now, I'm here [playing] for this team,” Robert said. “I know they have two options. It's a possibility. I'd like to be here. Like I've said before, my mind is here. I don't try to think ahead."

Robert's long home run in Friday's 7-1 win over Toronto might have slowly started a turnaround, but he would like to put together more connections like he had on Friday and Tuesday.

“I still don’t feel like I’m at the moment of my hitting,” Robert said. “That pitch in that [Toronto] game was kind of similar to this. It was a pitch in the middle of the strike zone, and I was able to put the bat on the ball and take advantage of that mistake. That’s what I used to do before and that’s what I’m trying to do now.

“Sometimes, you confuse being patient with letting pitches in the strike zone [go by]. That's probably the hardest part, to balance it. But you need to remember that you need to kill the pitches that are your pitches. ... I’m feeling good. I’ve been feeling healthy, which is the most important part. I’ve been working every day, hard, trying to get rid of this situation, this moment passing through.”