Where Has Chris Getz Seen Progress As Chicago White Sox Reach Halfway Point?

CHICAGO –– The White Sox hit the halfway point of the 2025 season after Wednesday's 7-3 win over the Diamondbacks, powered by two Lenyn Sosa home runs, three-hit games for Mike Tauchman and Kyle Teel, plus a solid start from Sean Burke.

From a big-picture statistical standpoint, the team is marginally better than last year's group, a low bar, given that the 2024 team that lost an MLB modern era record of 121 games. The White Sox run differential has improved from -168 through 81 games last season to -82 this year, and the record is a tick better at 26-55, compared to 21-60.

But only the 18-62 Rockies, who may set a new record for losses, are keeping the White Sox from having the worst record in MLB in back-to-back seasons. They're also well on their way to a third straight season with 100-plus losses. An 8-31 record in games decided by one or two runs has helped define the first half.

For general manager Chris Getz, though, the main focus during this rebuilding season isn't necessarily on the major league team's record. The health of the organization can also be measured by the minor league system, which has improved after a few notable trades last season. Some of those acquisitions have broken into the big leagues, too, providing glimpeses of what the future could look like.

"Going into the year, the focus wasn’t just primarily on the record because we knew that there are so many things that go into improving this organization long term," Getz said Monday in Chicago. "It’s what we certainly are set out to do. If you look around the field, some of these young players stepping up and developing. Miguel Vargas is continuing to get better and is becoming an impactful bat at the Major League level, which is great for us, great for the future."

"Chase Meidroth is stepping up, his first season, new organization, to do what he’s been doing on both sides of the ball. You look at our chase rates, our walk percentage, you look at some of what our young starters doing, Shane Smith, Grant Taylor taking the mound like he did last night and really shutting the door. There are a lot of things to highlight."

The White Sox have nine rookies on the current roster, tied for most in MLB with the Marlins, including the league's two youngest catchers in Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero. That's part of a constant shuffle that has seen the team use a major-league high 53 players.

They'll welcome several new players to the organization during the MLB Draft on July 13, which Getz called their priority right now. The White Sox will pick 10th overall, their sixth time in the last nine years with a top-11 pick. Their last four first-round draft picks have yet to make their major league debuts – Colson Montgomery, Noah Schultz, Jacob Gonzalez and Hagen Smith – but represent key cogs in the rebuild.

After the draft, they'll focus more on the trade deadline. Getz mentioned they've already received calls on some players, and he expects to be "fairly active" leading up to the July 31 deadline. There's still a long way to go in the rebuild, and the upcoming draft and trade deadline represent two major points in that process.

"There are other areas that need to be continued to developed, worked on, we are focused on doing that," Getz said. "We had objectives coming in we really wanted to focus on with our major league staff, and they have done a pretty good job in executing that. We know there’s more that needs to happen for us to turn the corner and accelerate some things."

"Overall feel pretty good about things. When you look at a record like we have, you are not too happy about it by any stretch. But there are some positives that we can hang our hat on and continue to move forward."