Burke, Montgomery lift White Sox to 3-0 shutout over Blue Jays

TORONTO — Sean Burke surrendered only two hits in 6 2/3 shutout innings, and shortstop Colson Montgomery drilled his 24th homer to lead the Chicago White Sox to a 3-0 win in the rubber match against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday.

Burke (7-4) retired the first 10 Blue Jays, only to have Nathan Lukes break up his perfect game with a one-out infield hit to third in the fourth. Burke’s 98-pitch outing included five strikeouts and a two-out walk to Ernie Clement in the sixth inning.

Trey Yesavage (4-5), coming off a horrible seven-walk brief outing before the all-star break, also enjoyed a strong game with a no-hitter through three innings. But in the fourth, Montgomery singled with one out, which eventually led to the White Sox’s opening run on Andrew Benintendi’s sacrifice fly.

Montgomery increased the visitors’ lead to 2-0 with a two-out solo shot, the first of two Chicago runs in the sixth. Yesavage went six innings with 95 pitches, yielding three runs on five hits with two walks and nine strikeouts before 41,288 at Rogers Centre.

Daulton Varsho had the other Blue Jays hit, a two-out single to centre that ended Burke’s afternoon. White Sox reliever Grant Taylor picked up his fifth save.

The White Sox (52-46), who entered the afternoon tied with the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the American League, won five of their last six outings. The Blue Jays (46-53) remain in last place in the AL East.

Takeaways

Blue Jays: There was a moment of silence and a scoreboard video tribute for 62-year-old Duane Ward before the game. The two-time World Series champion passed away from natural causes while in Toronto for the weekend for the team’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

White Sox: Canadian rookie outfielder Tristan Peters of Winkler, Man., had four putouts in centre, but had a rough day at the plate with three strikeouts.

Key moment

Benintendi doubled and scored on Braden Montgomery’s two-out single to centre to increase Chicago’s advantage to 3-0 in the sixth inning.

Key stat

Burke has gone 5-1 on the road this season, allowing three runs or less in each of his eight appearances away from Chicago.

Up next

Dylan Cease (6-4) will face Tampa Bay Rays righty Nick Martinez (8-2) in the opener of the Blue Jays four-game series against the AL East leaders on Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 19, 2026.

Tim Wharnsby, The Canadian Press