White Sox pitcher Noah Schultz got yanked early from his start on Friday — but it had little to do with his performance.
Midway through the first inning during Chicago’s 8-2 loss to the Guardians, White Sox manager Will Venable went to check on Schultz after the southpaw allowed two runs.
The only problem?
It was the White Sox’s second mound visit of the inning, which meant Schultz had to exit the game.
MLB rules state that teams are given four mound visits per nine innings, and the coaching staff “can make one mound visit per pitcher per inning” before having to pull them from the game.
Umpires appeared confused as Venable walked out to the mound a second time, while Guardians skipper Stephen Vogt knew that Schultz had to exit the game.
The umpires then reconvened before ruling that Venable had to bring in a new pitcher.
Schultz exited after just ⅓ of an inning, giving up two earned runs on three hits.
David Sandlin, who entered the game for Schultz, did not fare much better, yielding six earned runs — and two home runs — through 5⅓ innings.
The Venable blunder comes as another, albeit unintentional, blow to Schultz, 23, who has had a rough rookie season in Chicago.
Entering Friday’s game, Schultz held a 3-8 record with a 5.82 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 65 innings.
The towering 6-foot-10 Schultz was drafted by the White Sox with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2022 draft.
He was called up in mid-April after dominating for Triple-A Charlotte to start the season, pitching to a 1.29 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 14 innings at that level.
