change of sox?

Give a tip of the cap today to Marcus Thames, the Louisville native who serves as hitting coach of the Chicago White Sox. The ChiSox went into the All-Star break with the worst record in the American League and woeful offensive numbers. They’ve come out of the break looking like the ’27 Yankees: an MLB-best 61 runs in a 6-1 surge. On Friday, sparked by a bunch of rookies, the White Sox blasted the crosstown-rival Cubs 12-5, racking up a season-high 18 hits at Rate Field. Their reported plan was to sit on and attack Shota Imanaga’s fastball; they knocked him out in the fourth inning while building a 9-0 lead. Thames, in his second year with the team, deserves a little credit here. He endured the 2024 disaster that cost manager Pedro Grifol his job and was retained by new manager Will Venable for the 2025 rebuild. Thames, a former MLB slugger and a veteran hitting coach, said in a TV interview before the All-Star break that the key to being a good coach is “all about building relationships.” He told The Chicago Sports Network he just wanted to “make sure our guys understand their strengths.” That seems to be happening. “We were on a mission when we came back (from the break),” rookie Chase Meidroth told mlb.com. Every starter had a hit on Friday. Rookie Edgar Quero had four knocks and Meidroth had three, including a first-inning homer off Imanaga. Colson Montgomery, yet another first-year player, also took Imanaga deep. The White Sox are too far back to make a playoff run, but they might be a fun team to watch as a spoiler down the stretch. P.S. Austin Riley returned to Atlanta’s lineup Friday but couldn’t help the Braves pull out of their tailspin. The former DeSoto Central High star went 0-for-4 in an 8-3 loss at Texas that dropped Atlanta 14 games under .500. … Jacob Waguespack, an Ole Miss alum, was designated for assignment by Tampa Bay; the onetime big leaguer was on the injured list at Triple-A Durham, where he had pitched well (0.46 ERA in 15 games). He has not made an MLB appearance this season.