Benintendi’s Ninth-Inning Blast Lifts White Sox Past Diamondbacks

There’s a particular brand of frustration that comes with watching your team dominate for eight innings, only to have it all unravel in a single swing. That’s exactly what happened to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night at Chase Field, where Andrew Benintendi‘s three-run bomb in the ninth inning sent the Chicago White Sox home with a 4-1 victory. It was a gut-punch finish to what should have been a much more comfortable evening for the D-backs.

Let’s start with what Arizona did right. Adrian Del Castillo’s line-drive double in the first inning scored Ketel Marte and gave the home team an early 1-0 lead. The Diamondbacks’ pitching staff was largely outstanding through eight innings, with Michael Soroka and Juan Morillo combining to keep the White Sox offense at bay. There were even some highlight-reel defensive moments, including Munetaka Murakami’s diving stop and Geraldo Perdomo’s run-saving play. On any other night, this pitching performance holds up. On Thursday, it wasn’t enough.

The White Sox were patient, methodical, and efficient. Miguel Vargas’ RBI single in the third tied the game at 1-1, with Vargas and Murakami getting into position for what would eventually prove to be an explosive late-game situation. But here’s where things get interesting: the real story wasn’t just about Benintendi’s heroics, though those were spectacular. It was about Grant Taylor‘s gutsy relief work and the White Sox’s ability to manufacture just enough contact to stay alive.

Taylor’s Brief But Dominant Appearance

When Grant Taylor took over in relief, he was virtually untouchable. In 1.2 innings, Taylor struck out three batters while allowing just two hits and no earned runs. That’s the kind of lockdown performance that sets up a team to win close ballgames. The White Sox weren’t blowing Arizona away, but they were doing the little things right, and Taylor’s appearance was a perfect example of quality pitching when it mattered most.

And then came the ninth. Paul Sewald couldn’t find the zone, issuing two walks to start the inning before Benintendi stepped up and changed the entire complexion of this game. The three-run homer to right-center field wasn’t just a momentum-shifter, it was a dagger. The Diamondbacks had a whole game to break through against a White Sox pitching staff that, frankly, looked vulnerable at times. They didn’t capitalize, and baseball has a way of punishing that kind of indifference.

Arizona’s Missed Opportunity

For the Diamondbacks, this loss stings because they had control of the game. Soroka escaped a bases-loaded jam, the defense made plays when it needed to, and they had a lead heading into the stretch. But a relief appearance by Paul Sewald that lasted barely two-thirds of an inning and resulted in three earned runs on one hit and two walks is unacceptable, regardless of the circumstances. That’s not championship-level pitching in a critical moment.

Seranthony Domínguez closed it out cleanly for Chicago, striking out two in a scoreless ninth. Colson Montgomery also had a strong day at the plate, collecting three hits. The White Sox win because they refused to quit and because Arizona’s relief pitching couldn’t slam the door when it had the chance. That’s baseball in 2026, apparently, and the Diamondbacks will have to live with it.