Many players have played on both sides of Chicago's crosstown rivalry. None of them accomplished what Mike Tauchman did during the White Sox's 12-5 rout of the Cubs last night.
He made Crosstown Classic history when he took former White Sox pitcher Chris Flexen deep for a two-run homer in the fourth inning.
Tauchman became the first former hitter to switch sides in the rivalry to homer off of a former pitcher who did the same.
This was the first home run ever hit by an ex-Cubs batter (Tauchman) off an ex-White Sox pitcher (Flexen), or vice-versa, in a matchup of the two Chicago teams
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 26, 2025
h/t @EliasSports https://t.co/RSUDdcOByr
It is an interesting piece of trivia considering many players have gone from the North Side to the South Side during interleague play. I could have sworn Sammy Sosa took Jamie Navarro deep at least once during the early days of the Cubs vs. Sox, counting in the standings.
It is fitting that White Sox OF Mike Tauchman accomplished this feat off of Chris Flexen.
Tauchman revived his career with the Cubs after things got so bad for him that he had to play in Korea during the 2022 season.
Tauchman was a solid utility outfielder for the Cubs the past two seasons. He played solid defense and was outstanding at getting on base, with a .360 on-base percentage during his two-year tenure with the Cubbies.
He has been even better for the White Sox with a .832 OPS and a .315 average with runners in scoring position. The "Palatine Pounder" went from being an excess player on the Cubs to a vital veteran on the White Sox.
I think that was kind of envisioned when the White Sox brought Tauchman to the South Side after the Cubs non-tendered him this past offseason.
Flexen was terrible for the White Sox during last year's historically awful season. The only value he provided was that he ate 160 innings.
Otherwise, he had a 4.95 ERA, a 4.80 FIP, and a 1.52 WHIP in 2024. I always felt like watching a Flexen start was like bracing for the worst while hoping for the best, given how many runners he put on base. The Cubs needed pitching depth this season, and that is why is he was brought to the North Side - where he's performed much better, with a 3.02 ERA in 20 games.
It was probably destined to take one of the more mediocre pitchers to suit up for both sides facing a solid hitter who played for both teams to accomplish this feat. Those two elements finally came together to make rivalry history on Friday.