White Sox Rookie Makes History With Incredible Start

The White Sox started off the season much better than many expected, as they were in basically every single game with a chance to win them. However, that hasn’t been the case as of late, as the White Sox have lost six in a row.

For the first few games, the starting pitching was phenomenal, as the White Sox starters went 20+ innings without giving up a run. That hasn’t been the case as of late, as the second time around for the first four starters didn’t go like it did the first time. However, for Shane Smith, it was even better.

In Shane Smith’s first start against the Minnesota Twins, he threw 5.2 innings, giving up two runs. He struck out three while walking four batters. While you would obviously like to see less walks, you can’t ask for much more out of a first career start from your rule-5 draft pick.

Smith then proceeded to follow it up with an even better start, as he blanked the Cleveland Guardians over six innings. He struck out six while just walking one, the walks were much more in line with how Smith usually pitches.

In fact, according to Codify Baseball, Smith made history in his second start.

Shane Smith is the first pitcher to throw at least 11⅔ innings in his first 2 MLB games and allow no more than 4 total bases since Shovel Hodge did it for the 1920 White Sox. pic.twitter.com/bUir1SJ1Wo

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) April 9, 2025

Codify Baseball notes that Smith is the first pitcher since Shovel Hodge in 1920 to throw at least 11 and 2/3rds innings while allowing no more than four total bases. Anytime you do something that hasn’t been done in over 100 years, it deserves to be celebrated.

Smith was absolutely nasty on the day, as he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

Shane Smith becomes the first @whitesox rookie since 2011 to take a no-hit bid into the 6th.

The first pick in the 2024 Rule 5 Draft has held opposing batters to a .105 average this year: pic.twitter.com/nsYofePWqh

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 8, 2025

It is very encouraging to see this kind of start out of Smith, as he has pitched well against two division rivals. Smith has shown that he has the chance to stick around in the major league rotation, as he has been the best starter through the first 11 games.

While there haven’t been many bright spots for the White Sox so far, Smith is definitely one of them and it should be fun to see him continue to grow over the course of the season.