NEW YORK — The Chicago White Sox escaped several jams throughout Tuesday’s game against the New York Yankees.
They were one pitch away from getting out of trouble a final time in the ninth inning. But that last out never came.
The Yankees scored twice with two outs in the ninth to defeat the Sox 3-2 in front of 38,318 at Yankee Stadium.
“Just played such a good game and you are a pitch away there from ending it,” manager Will Venable said. “(You) know how hard it is to get those last three outs. Just weren’t able to finish it off.
“A well-played game, but didn’t get the result.”
The Sox went to the ninth with a 2-1 lead thanks to a two-run home run by Colson Montgomery in the sixth inning.
New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge runs to home plate to score on a walk-off RBI single during the ninth inning of a game against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
The Yankees began the ninth with back-to-back singles by Anthony Volpe and Austin Wells against reliever Brandon Eisert.
Trent Grisham grounded into a double play, putting the Sox one out away from the win. They intentionally walked Aaron Judge, giving the Yankees runners on the corners with Cody Bellinger coming to the plate for a lefty-lefty matchup.
The count went full and on the seventh pitch of the at-bat, Eisert threw ball four high and out of the reach of catcher Kyle Teel. Volpe raced home to tie the score at 2.
“Got into a good spot with two strikes on Bellinger,” Venable said. “Liked Eisert versus Bellinger and got to two strikes and couldn’t put them away. Tried to put a little something extra on the fastball there at 3-2 and just couldn’t put him away. It got away from him.”
José Caballero followed with a single to center against reliever Steven Wilson and Judge beat Michael A. Taylor’s throw to the plate to give the Yankees the win and a postseason berth. The Sox, meanwhile, suffered their 99th loss of the season. At 58-99, they need to go 5-0 in their final five games to avoid their third straight 100-loss season.
There were a ton of positives leading up to the ninth.
Sox starter Shane Smith allowed one run on five hits with eight strikeouts and four walks in five innings.
Chicago White Sox’s Colson Montgomery tags out New York Yankees’ Ben Rice during the fifth inning of a game Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
“I just pounded the zone better (on Tuesday),” Smith said of his 93-pitch outing. “Got in front of hitters, made some pretty good two-strike pitches. Overall, just sharper.”
He worked out of a first-and-third jam in the first inning, striking out Giancarlo Stanton. The Yankees scored once in the second on an RBI double by Austin Wells. But Smith escaped further damage by getting Bellinger to fly out to center with the bases loaded.
“(Smith’s) fastball sticks out to me,” Venable said. “I know I’ve said it a bunch. He was really good tonight. There were some 98s and 97s (mph) there early. Just continued to be aggressive.”
Rookies Teel and Montgomery provided an offensive spark for the Sox in the sixth.
With one out, Teel’s bloop to right-center landed in front of outfielders Grisham and Judge for a single. Montgomery followed with a 428-foot home run to right field on a 1-1 pitch from Yankees starter Luis Gil.
“You’re trying to do whatever you can to get the guys going,” Montgomery said. “Teel had a good at-bat and was able to get on for me, so I think at that point, it was just trying to get guys on base.
“So we were all having really good at-bats, and I was just kind of waiting for him to leave something over in the middle, and just not miss it.”
It was Montgomery’s 19th home run of the season.
“We needed that from Colson,” Venable said. “We see when he does that, it gives us a chance to win. He’s a difference maker. After a tough little stretch, to see him take that swing was awesome. Gave us a boost and the lead.”
The Sox carried the lead into the ninth with the help of relievers Jordan Leasure and Grant Taylor.
Leasure induced an inning-ending double play off the bat of Judge in the seventh inning. The Yankees had runners on the corners with two outs in the eighth when Taylor struck out Amed Rosario looking.
But the Sox couldn’t close it out.
“As a true competitor, you go out there and you try to win every single game and sometimes these things are going to happen,” Montgomery said. “It’s just all learning experiences for us. Everybody on this team’s a true competitor, and they’re all trying to win, and sometimes it sucks and doesn’t go your way.”