Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Shane Smith started the 2025 on an unbelievable tear.
Through the first 13 starts of his MLB career, Smith had an ERA of 2.37 and had never allowed more than three earned runs in an outing. He was near the top of the American League in every major statistical category and got well-deserved buzz to make the AL All-Star roster.
However, Smith's last two outings have not gone nearly as well. He has given up 10 earned runs, 10 hits, five walks, and hit two batters in 6.1 innings over two starts. That has raised his season ERA to 3.38 and quieted some of the All-Star Game conversations.
Smith had never been a full-time starting pitcher before the 2025 season. The 94.1 innings he threw in 2024 are the most of his professional career. With that in mind, it's natural to think Smith may have hit a metaphorical wall with his innings total now at 74.2 over the last three months.
Does this mean Smith is going to pitch poorly the rest of the way for the White Sox? Not necessarily. The latest update from White Sox manager Will Venable and GM Chris Getz provided a bit of a silver lining regarding Smith's health and future.
The White Sox are confident in Shane Smith
Will Venable assured the media after Monday's rough outing that Smith is still in a good spot both physically and mentally.
"He's in a good spot physically, mentally," said Venable. The White Sox manager did not entertain the idea of skipping starts to give Smith extra rest.
"We're taking this one rotation cycle at a time to figure out the best thing to manage workload, and do the best we can to keep these guys in good spots. Right now, that's not something we're discussing." (via James Fegan)
The White Sox need to protect their young pitchers at all costs this season. The organization has already been destroyed by elbow injuries to some key prospects and big league contributors. The last thing the Sox need is Shane Smith joining Drew Thorpe and Ky Bush in Tommy John surgery rehab.
Among Chris Getz's many comments pregame today, they are going to continue monitoring their young hurlers' innings totals and workload but they don't seem inclined to shut down anyone if that can be avoided.
— Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) June 23, 2025
Smith doesn't seem to have lost any velocity on his fastball, either. His four-seamer averaged 95.7 mph on Monday, which is actually on the higher end of his starts this season.
There are no typical signs of fatigue and all indications from the White Sox are that Smith is still feeling good, even if the results have been more lackluster of late.
Hopefully, this points to Smith's last two starts being outliers rather than the new norm. His emergence as a high-end starting pitcher has transformed the organization's future outlook and the White Sox can't afford to lose the security Smith has given them.
It would also be nice to see Smith settle down and officially earn the nod to be Chicago's representative in the 2025 MLB All-Star Game. He is well deserving.