The White Sox brought the bats with them on their latest west coast road trip. An offense that struggled mightily early this season has come alive in their last four games, hitting home runs at an impressive rate. Munetaka Murakami’s remarkable stretch continued into Tuesday evening’s game against the Diamondbacks, but the team’s three-straight homers in the second inning weren’t even the craziest part of the night.
Sam Antonacci's first MLB home run was one he'll never forget
With the White Sox up 8-2 in the top of the 9th, outfielder Everson Pereira took a pitch off his left arm to reach base leading off the inning. Recently promoted prospect Sam Antonacci stepped in, still looking for his first big league home run. Antonacci took a sinker on the outer half down the third base line for his second extra base hit of the evening. As the ball rolled toward the corner, Arizona’s ballboy ran in front of it to field the ball. Realizing it was far too late, he tried to jump out of the way, and the ball appeared to glance off his foot. Diamondbacks outfielder Lourdes Gurriel stopped, anticipating interference would be called by the umpiring crew. Instead, no call was made, and the White Sox circled the bases. Gurriel finally picked up the ball and threw it home, but not before Antonacci crossed the plate for an inside-the-park home run.
Dbacks manager Torey Lovullo challenged the play, claiming the ball was interfered with by the ballboy. He seemed to have a fair argument, but New York reviewed the play and the call on the field stood. Since the only error on the play was mental, it was ruled a home run for Antonacci, the first of his major league career. As for the estimated distance: 57 feet. Certainly the shortest home run by a White Sox player this season, and that’s unlikely to change.
INSIDE-THE-PARK HOME RUN FOR SAM ANTONACCI 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/cjgADPis9X
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) April 22, 2026
A first major league home run is something a player will always remember, and the bizarre nature of Sam Antonacci’s will definitely make it even more memorable. It’s fitting for a player who self-described his play style as “unorthodox” to achieve such a milestone in a most unorthodox way. It hasn’t been the smoothest transition to the big leagues for Antonacci, who earned just one hit in his first four major league games, but his fortunes could be starting to turn around after a pinch-hit single on Sunday and a multi-hit game on Tuesday. He should receive plenty of at bats as the White Sox look to establish him as a part of their future.
The White Sox have two more games on their west coast road trip before heading home. Let’s hope the recent offensive trends continue and the home runs keep coming in bunches. Whether they’re 57 feet or 457 feet, they count the same. And at this point, we’ll take whatever we can get.
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