On Sunday came the announcement that today’s starter, Shane Smith, was named to the 2025 AL All-Star squad.
This selection makes Smith the first rookie pitcher in White Sox history to be selected to an All-Star Team and the seventh overall White Sox rookie to be named an All-Star. Along with second baseman Dan Uggla (Florida Marlins, 2006), Smith has also become the second player and only pitcher in MLB history to be an All-Star following his Rule 5 selection.
Truly, it had to be somebody. Given Smith’s last four starts, all subpar and moving his average game score into the red (less than average for a starter), it would have seemed that if the AL was desperately needing a starter from the White Sox, Adrian Houser would have been the better pick.