CHICAGO -- There was one out and nobody on base in the bottom of the ninth inning of the White Sox 3-2 loss to the Padres before a crowd of 24,205 at Rate Field Sunday afternoon, but fans’ chants of “Let’s go Sox” continued to ring out across the stadium.
That encouragement ultimately didn’t push the White Sox over the top, as they lost for the eighth time in nine games and finished their home ledger with a 33-48 mark. The total 2025 attendance of 1,445,738 wasn’t overwhelming, although up from ‘24, but it was a consistently vocal and primarily supportive group, apparently buying into what the team is building.
“Yeah, 100 percent. I think they see what we're starting to build here, and I think they're excited for it,” said White Sox starter Sean Burke, who fell to 4-11 after allowing three runs (two earned) in four innings with four strikeouts. “We appreciate the fans coming out as always.
“We think we have great fans. With our group, I think we feed off the energy the crowd brings a lot, so hopefully there's a lot more to come.”
What would make the White Sox fans buy into this rebuild process even more? Additional victories definitely would help, as the South Siders fell to 58-98 overall and need to go 5-1 at the Yankees and at the Nationals to avoid a third straight 100-loss campaign.
The fans also would like to see Chicago move into free agency this upcoming offseason and add a player or two to the burgeoning crew on display for much of this season. As general manager Chris Getz said during his season-wrap media session Wednesday, the White Sox will make the move if they feel it’s appropriate for where they are, but it’s too early to tell what direction will be taken and the focus centers on developing the young core.
Burke’s work, Mike Vasil’s three strikeouts in three scoreless, Grant Taylor’s two strikeouts in another dominant frame and Jordan Leasure’s continued excellence with one strikeout in two-thirds of an inning show some of those youthful mound possibilities. The White Sox 26-33 record since the All-Star break, despite the recent falloff, has them believing the 2026 season could be a division-contending one, not just one in which they get to .500.
“Why not? That’s the goal,” Leasure said. “We come in this year and that’s the goal, even though [there were] not a whole lot of expectations for us to do that this year. But I think each individual guy coming in this year, that’s what you want to do. So I think especially going into next year, building off what we’ve done this second half, why not?”
Skipper Will Venable managed for a victory in Sunday’s home finale, just as he has done all season regardless of the team’s standing. He pinch-hit with Curtis Mead and Andrew Benintendi in key game situations, then brought in Korey Lee as a pinch-runner for Benintendi in the seventh inning, leaving the catcher to make his first Major League appearance in left field.
Lee made a slick sliding catch down the left-field line in the eighth inning and held a runner at third with a strong throw home after catching Will Wagner’s short fly ball in the ninth. He also dropped a ball in left, which didn’t lead to a run.
“I've been doing it for a couple months out there, just running around,” said Lee, who used a Luis Robert Jr. glove in action. “Got to get my feet wet in a real game. It was a good time to do it. Obviously, I'll learn from mistakes and keep on learning the game."
“I know he doesn’t have any game experience, but he’s been working hard out there,” said Venable of Lee. “We really didn’t have any other options. We chose to pinch-hit in some big spots. We had some guys on the bench who weren’t able to play defense. We had to go to Korey Lee.”
White Sox fans who made the trip to the Rate this weekend sat through the team’s 0-for-11 showing with runners in scoring position Sunday, but they also had the chance to see Jose Abreu’s return to the ballpark and walk away with a 1959 Comiskey Park stadium replica AM/FM radio as the final day giveaway. They also saw the White Sox battle but finish short, a common theme over the past three years but one that hasn’t completely sapped their support.
“With the young guys, we bring a lot of excitement, so they kind of reciprocate,” said Leasure of the fans. “It kind of bounces back and forth. That gives us energy, and fans get energy from the young guys here.
“When you play well, it’s exciting to watch. When they are excited, we get excited and play better.”