Chicago White Sox infielder Colson Montgomery left Wednesday's game with a left wrist contusion after being hit by a pitch. Munetaka Murakami stepped into the game to replace Montgomery, moving over to first as All-Star Miguel Vargas shifted to third. Montgomery, 24, has been with the big league club all season, playing 144 games over the course of the year.
He has 31 homers and 84 RBIs, but his OPS sits at only .710. His high strikeout rate and low on-base percentage are part of the reason for that, as he is hitting just above the Mendoza Line and has struck out four times for every walk drawn this season. He came up to the bigs in July 2025, taking the league by storm with an electric second half of the season.
He hit 21 homers in just 71 games, driving in 55 runs over the course of the year with an .840 OPS. Montgomery's injury couldn't come at a worse time, as they are currently hanging onto their spot atop the NL Central by a thread. They sit 0.5 games ahead of the Cleveland Guardians, though they currently face a 5-3 deficit against their division rival in Wednesday's game.
If Chicago drops out of the top spot, the AL East's Toronto Blue Jays will be treating down their necks in the Wild Card. While Montgomery's overall results for the season are passable, largely due to his immense power, he has done more harm than goo in the box in recent weeks. Since the beginning of September, Montgomery has a .104 batting average and an OPS just north of .500 — striking out 25 times over the course of 15 games.
If he is to miss time due to the injury, Luisangel Acuna will likely get some more looks at shortstop with Vargas and Murakami playing on either side of the infield. The White Sox will hope that's not the case, though, as Montgomery could be a key bat for them with a potential postseason appearance just around the corner. His next opportunity to play comes Thursday at 6:40 p.m.
CT, when they begin another series against the Detroit Tigers.
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