Adrian Houser and Grant Taylor -- 'both amazing' -- in White Sox's 1-0 win over Giants

LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune on Jun 28, 2025

Published in Baseball

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CHICAGO — A tough situation became even more challenging for the Chicago White Sox during the sixth inning Saturday at Rate Field when starter Adrian Houser got called for a balk, placing runners on second and third with no outs.

Oh, and Rafael Devers was at the plate.

Houser handled the circumstances like the experienced pitcher that he is, with the help of his rookie catcher.

He struck out Devers and then watched as catcher Edgar Quero made a snap throw to third to catch Brett Wisely for a unique double play.

“That was huge on (Quero) right there, being able to be heads up in the moment,” Houser said. “He and (third baseman Josh Rojas) were able to get that communication going and see that was there. It was a huge double play, changed a lot of the momentum.”

Heliot Ramos then lined out to center as Houser escaped the jam without allowing a run.

The Sox carried that momentum into the bottom of the sixth, when Andrew Benintendi homered to right field. That would be all the offense as the Sox topped the San Francisco Giants 1-0 in front of 20,090.

Houser outdueled Giants starter Robbie Ray in a fantastic pitching showdown. Houser allowed four hits in seven innings, struck out five and walked one.

“The stuff has ticked up this year,” manager Will Venable said. “He’s just got that experience and that ability to navigate a lineup. Game plan is working extremely well and communicating extremely well with our catchers. We also had great defense behind him. He’s just been outstanding.”

Ray made just one mistake, the home run by Benintendi. He allowed four hits with six strikeouts and two walks in six innings.

Grant Taylor pitched the final two innings for the Sox in a six-out save.

“The stuff, the command, everything makes you want to have him out there,” Venable said. “To have him be able to have the capacity to go multiple innings there is invaluable.”

Solid defense supported the strong pitching throughout the game.

Austin Slater made a leaping catch and crashed into the right-field wall to rob Jung Hoo Lee of an extra-base hit in the second.

“I was kind of like, ‘Oh, crap, I left a changeup down just enough,'” Houser said. “Lee put a good swing on it and got the barrel to it. Heck of a job by Slate making that play and going up and getting it. That was huge.

“The defense in general today, making great plays all the way around, 1 through 9.”

The biggest play came on the throw by Quero and tag by Rojas to nail Wisely on his way back to third base in the sixth.

“I was talking to Josh before the game and I was like, ‘I want to try to do some back picks today,'” Quero said. “And I saw him in that situation, and he picked me up and I threw the ball.”

Rojas added: “I deked early on just to see if they would react and I got no reaction out of the third-base coach or the runner, so I figured they were going to try to be aggressive and score on contact.

“(Quero), we always talk about it. He’s looking at me every pitch, waiting for me to call it. I felt like it was a pretty good opportunity to call it, and he responded right away and got him.”

After the Sox found a way out of trouble, Benintendi provided the offense with his 10th home run of the season.

“Before that inning, I asked him, ‘Hey, (if it’s runners on) first and second, would you be comfortable bunting?'” Venable said. “He said yes. I said I would love a homer too.

“He stepped up and showed me that maybe he’s not a candidate to bunt in that situation. Just a really nice job by him getting on the heater. It’s the difference in the game.”

The Sox missed out on a chance to add on in the seventh when Michael A. Taylor’s hand didn’t touch home plate as he tried to score on a Rojas single.

“Just one of those tough ones where, as a runner, you don’t really have much of a choice there with a catcher who is moving up the line to receive the throw,” Venable said.

Grant Taylor made sure it wouldn’t be costly, striking out two in his two perfect innings for his second save.

“It’s a lot of fun being out there,” he said of the save situation.

Houser and Taylor combined for the four-hitter and the team’s fifth shutout of the season.

“Those guys made my job easy,” Venable said. “Great job by Adrian, pounded the zone, got a ton of swing-and-miss. And then Grant, that’s a big ask to get those last six guys. Those guys are both amazing.”

Jonathan Cannon returns Sunday

Right-hander Jonathan Cannon will return from the injured list to start Sunday’s series finale against the Giants after pitching three scoreless innings for Charlotte during an injury rehab assignment.

Cannon allowed one hit, walked one and had two strikeouts in the Tuesday outing at Toledo. He has been on the IL since June 3 with a lower back strain.

“Everything felt good,” Cannon said Saturday. “Back to normal. All my stuff was good. Felt like I was able to attack the zone, get out of it what I wanted to get out of it. Feel like I’m ready to get going again.”

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