Jac Caglianone crushes two home runs vs. Rays

Montgomery doubled in the first inning to bring a run home for the White Sox. With the game later tied in the eighth, he took Tim Herrin deep for a solo homer to give Chicago the lead. The 24-year-old slugging shortstop is up to 22 homers and 51 RBI while slashing .221/.308/.484 across 351 plate appearances.

Hedges knocked a base hit to lead off the third. He then supplied Cleveland’s only run of the game with a solo homer off Sean Burke in the fifth. He’s hit safely in six straight starts, with home runs in two of his last three. The 33-year-old backstop is having his best season at the plate, hitting .281/.343/.413 with three homers, 16 runs scored, and 14 RBI across 138 plate appearances.

Taylor was summoned in the ninth inning to close out the game against the Guardians with a two-run lead. He struck out the first batter, then worked around a walk with two groundouts to secure the win for Chicago with his third save of the season. The 24-year-old right-hander is the only reliever worth rostering in the White Sox bullpen despite not working every save chance. He’s posted a 2.96 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and a 65/15 K/BB ratio across 45 2/3 innings.

Burke held the Guardians scoreless through four innings before giving up a solo homer to Austin Hedges in the fifth. He completed one more frame, ending his day with just the one run, tossing 66 of 95 pitches for strikes and collecting a career-high 11 strikeouts. The 26-year-old right-hander will take a 3.56 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and a 106/33 K/BB ratio across 98 2/3 innings into a start against the Athletics in Chicago on Friday.

The White Sox put a run on the board in the first inning on a walk and a double. Messick then stranded two runners in the second and escaped a bases-loaded situation in the fourth before completing five innings with the one run allowed. He struck out three. The 25-year-old left-hander will take a 2.80 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and a 109/32 K/BB ratio across 106 innings into a start against the Marlins in Miami on Friday.

Kurtz is most deserving. He ranks first in the majors with 66 RBI and second in the AL with a .949 OPS. A’s Communications notes that, with Shea Lanegeliers catching, this will be the first time the franchise has had two All-Star starters since Rickey and David Henderson in 1991.

Dylan Cease, Parker Messick, Drew Rasmussen, Joe Ryan, Ranger Suarez and Michael Wacha are the other starters on the AL team. The relievers are Bryan Baker, Aroldis Chapman, Jacob Latz, Cade Smith and Louis Varland. It’s the second nod for Rasmussen, Ryan, Suarez and Wacha and the first for all of the rest other than Chapman, who will be going for the ninth time.

Joining them on the NL squad are starters Chase Burns, Max Meyer, Jacob Misiorowski, Eduardo Rodriguez, Chris Sale, Paul Skeens, Logan Webb and Yoshinobu Yamamoto and relievers Raisel Iglesias and Mason Miller. Shohei Ohtani might also be available, but it seems less likely that he’ll pitch after Friday’s biceps issue. Misiorowski is also expected to be scratched because he’s slated to start the Sunday before the game. That would make Sánchez the overwhelming favorite to start for the NL.

Guerrero has been struggling with his back for weeks now, so this seems to be for the best. He’ll still be credited with his sixth All-Star selection. If the AL replaces him with another first baseman (there’s still two on the roster in Nick Kurtz and Ben Rice), then Willson Contreras is most deserving, based on 2026 performance. Still, he might be bypassed in favor of Pete Alonso or Jonathan Aranda.

Gilbert retired 22 of 23 batters, and Cole Wilcox was a perfect 5-for-5 after coming on in an 11-0 game. Gilbert, originally due to piggyback with Emerson Hancock today, seemed pleased to have the start entirely to himself. His velocity was again up; he’s come in at 96.8, 97.1 and 97.0 mph with his fastball in his last three starts after averaging 95.5 mph in his first 15 outings. He got 18 whiffs today, including 12 with the fastball, and he allowed just three hard-hit balls. The win makes him 7-5 with a 3.19 ERA. He’s fourth in the majors with a 0.95 WHIP and tied for 12th with 114 strikeouts. He’ll get the Rays in his final start before the break.