The Chicago White Sox are just hours away from the first pitch of their first Postseason series since 2021. The Southsiders get set to butt heads with Houston for the first of a best-of-three series at Daikin Park on Tuesday evening, and they’ve released their full roster for the Wild Card series.
our squad is set pic.twitter.com/CE7vhegtQT
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) September 29, 2026
While there’s nothing quite to the level of the Guardians in 2025, who had Chase DeLauter make his MLB debut in the Postseason last year, there are a couple mild surprises. Of the 28 players who ended the year on the team’s roster, the two that missed the cut were right-handers Tyler Davis and Trevor Richards. It’s a bit surprising that the White Sox elected to roll with just 12 pitchers and 14 hitters, but when looking at the pitchers who made the cut, it’s easy to see why.
Of the 12 pitchers on the roster, almost all of them have the ability to go multiple innings. The White Sox are planning to start lefty Hagen Smith in Game 1 in what will almost certainly be a bullpen game. The plan after Hagen Smith is not yet known, but I’d expect the White Sox to take a matchup-heavy approach and for Will Venable to have a quick hook with his pitchers. Carrying several arms on the roster who can pitch 2-3 innings is how the White Sox are making up for the lack of established starters on the roster.
Trevor Richards and Tyler Davis are excluded from the Wild Card roster
As far as omissions go, Richards is probably the most surprising. The right-hander pitched in 54 games for Chicago after being acquired in a trade with the Phillies back in May, and his job mostly consisted of mop-up duty. In 83 innings Richards posted a 3.69 ERA in mostly low-leverage innings. He’s faltered a bit down the stretch, posting a 4.32 ERA in September and allowing runs in four of his last six outings. Tyler Davis, who floated between Triple-A and the majors at points this season, posted a 3.66 ERA in 31 games for the White Sox. Though he’s only allowed one run at the big league level since June, the White Sox preferred the flexibility of multi-inning arms for a short series.
The most interesting additions to the Wild Card roster have to be Anthony Kay and David Sandlin. Kay threw 74 pitches in Sunday’s season finale against the Rockies and didn’t seem to be available to start any of the games this week, but the White Sox including him on the roster likely indicates he’ll be available to pitch in relief. That may not be in Game 1, but he could be good for an inning or two in Games 2 and 3. Sandlin, on the other hand, hasn’t pitched since Thursday in Kansas City and could be in line to see some bulk innings this series. He’s had mixed results in his return to the big leagues, but his stuff looks good and he could be in a better position to succeed against a strong Houston lineup than someone like Erick Fedde.
As the Wild Card series in Houston gets underway, look for the White Sox to make pitching changes early and often, trying to get a platoon advantage whenever they can. They’ve built their pitching staff for a short series, and I expect Will Venable to manage it accordingly.
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