Despite a 19-game improvement, the 2025 White Sox had their fair share of issues, and the bullpen sticks out as one of their worst areas. As the season dragged on, those cracks never really sealed. Instead, they widened, and the bullpen became an area of little trust for manager Will Venable, even costing the team a few wins. Though the roster is ever changing, it's worth looking back at last season.
Peppered into the 2025 season were a few bad losing streaks. Early April and early May brought bullpen instability due to the starting rotation failing to find longevity in situations when the team needed it most. It's not unusual for a team to take some early-season time to find their footing, but when it came to the Sox bullpen, they just never found it.
The White Sox rotation will be the key to their bullpen
When the starting rotation of pitchers are routinely placing the bullpen in a losing situation, it makes perfect sense that a losing streak would follow. Between April 1st and April 10th, the White Sox saw their worst losing streak of the season, dropping eight in a row against the Twins, Tigers, and Guardians, respectively.
In that timeframe, the Sox starters pitched 40.8 innings, where the bullpen took 24.6 innings. That's over a third of the innings pitched by the bullpen, almost 40%. Overwork like that is enough to place a heavy weight on the already thin bullpen, and more than enough to push the odds toward a losing streak.
Clean innings and length will lead to success
Interestingly enough, when you look into the stats behind the Sox best win streak in 2025, the data might surprise you. Between August 31st and September 5th, Chicago swept the Twins and had a win each against the Yankees and Tigers.
The most interesting part of the winning streak was the bullpen usage. The bullpen pitched more innings than the starting rotation! The Starters pitched 25.0 innings whereas the bullpen took 29.3. That's a 46-54% ratio. The difference lies in how they got there. During the losing streak, the starters were sloppy- allowing short, chaotic outings to define them. Pitchers like Sean Burke and Jonathan Cannon struggled mightily with control, elevating pitch counts and causing short starts, and often leaving in jams.
The starters routinely left runners on base, and inherited traffic rarely ends well for a reliever. During the winning streak, they left innings clean and damage was limited. The early blowups were kept to a minimum and the impact was immediately felt.
Moving forward into 2026, the White Sox starting rotation will be a big factor toward the general health of the bullpen. The majority of the White Sox bullpen will be retained from last season, but some outside additions are expected. With veteran Anthony Kay in tow and more starting pitching help potentially on the way, the priority should be getting starters later in games, allowing a rested and effective bullpen.
From the perspective of first time manager Will Venable, clean breaks and controlled outings is much easier than attempting to smother a dumpster fire. The White Sox showed clear improvement over the 2024 season, but there's still a long road ahead. With the top 2026 draft pick secured at the Winter Meetings, the Sox are on the right track, but the execution is what will define this team in 2026 and beyond.