Smith's bounceback day: Strike out career high, earn 'dog' label from skipper

SEATTLE -- Shane Smith made White Sox history when he became the organization’s first rookie pitcher to be selected to an All-Star Game. But things went a bit sideways after the 25-year-old Rule 5 Draft pick earned that nod; after hitting a batter in the Midsummer Classic, he sprained his ankle while running before the White Sox had even taken the field for the first game of the second half.

Thursday, Smith gave the White Sox exactly the bounceback start they were looking for in his second outing since coming back from the IL in Chicago’s 4-3, 11-inning loss to the Mariners.

“Shane was good,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “I thought he had that look about him, and we hadn’t seen it in a few starts. He was in command. He looked like a dog out there. He was aggressive in the zone, all his stuff was good and he did a great job.”

Smith made it through five innings for the first time since June 10, striking out a career-high eight and allowing four hits and a walk.

He finished with 15 swings-and-misses on the afternoon. Six of those were against his curveball, on the first six swings against it. The only dent on his line came in the third, when Randy Arozarena pulled one into the bullpen for a two-run home run.

“That’s been the lefty-attack pitch this year, over the slider,” Smith said. “I tried to introduce it to righties a little more, and obviously, I got banged on it. But that’s something I feel comfortable throwing to both sides.”

Smith’s four-seam fastball, meanwhile, sat nearly a full mile per hour faster than his season average, while his sinker was 1.2 mph above his standard. He reared back to find 98.6 mph in the first inning, his second-fastest four-seamer since his first start of the season.

“[I was] getting swings on maybe not my best pitches,” Smith said. “But when you see those swings, you know they’re probably sitting on something else. Me and [catcher Edgar Quero] had a good gameplan, just playing the back-and-forth with that.”

But probably the most important number on Smith’s line came in the innings column. After completing five innings in 10 of his first 11 starts and posting a 2.36 ERA through May 21, the right-hander had hit a rut over the summer going into the break, totaling just 11 innings in three July outings.

In his first start back from the IL in Anaheim last week, Smith went 4 1/3 innings on 71 pitches. This time around, he upped the pitch count to 78, including 50 strikes, and got that big 15th out.

“I wish I could’ve gone longer, but I’m glad I got through five for the first time in a little bit,” he said.

Smith’s outing -- and the six Chicago relievers who came after him -- kept the game within reach as the White Sox lineup chipped away with the long ball.

Michael A. Taylor began the comeback effort in the top of the fifth, pouncing on a hanging splitter from Logan Gilbert for his second home run in as many games. Two frames later, Brooks Baldwin tied it up on a solo homer to right field.

It’s the first time this season that Chicago -- which slugged three homers in each of the first two games of the series -- has gone deep multiple times in three straight games.

As a team, the White Sox have hit 36 home runs since the All-Star break, leapfrogging the Phillies for most in baseball in the second half.

In extras, though, they got their offense without putting the ball in play, taking advantage of a walk and a hit batter to load the bases before Lenyn Sosa sprinted home on a wild pitch. The 3-2 lead wouldn’t last, as Josh Rojas -- who came in as a defensive replacement -- sailed his throw on a sacrifice bunt in the 10th, allowing the tying run to score. Seattle walked it off an inning later.

“It was a tough one,” Venable said. “Credit the guys for battling. The pitching was outstanding. But a lot of things we could point to where we have to play better.”

More history for Robert

Luis Robert Jr., who hit a home run milestone on Tuesday with his 100th career long ball, did so again with his legs Thursday, recording his 100th career steal in the top of the eighth.

He became the fourth player in White Sox history to hit triple-digits in both categories, joining Minnie Miñoso, Ray Durham and Alexei Ramirez.