Why Sam Antonacci IGNORES the Numbers and Focuses on Winning

The White Sox Podcast w/ Chuck Garfien

Chicago Sports Network

Sports, Sports:baseball, Baseball

4.7 • 620 Ratings

🗓️ 27 May 2026

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Chuck Garfien sits down with White Sox rookie Sam Antonacci for a discussion that dives into both his personality and the style of baseball that has quickly connected him with fans on the South Side. Sam talks about life inside a clubhouse full of gamers, why he embraces an old-school mentality in today’s analytical era, and how he tries to impact games in ways beyond hitting for power. He also reflects on his first career home run that turned into an unforgettable inside-the-park moment and explains why winning means far more to him than any individual stat line. Chuck and Sam also get into the relationships that have helped shape his rookie season, from sharing a locker area with Mike Vasil to reuniting in the organization with former teammate Rikuu Nishida. Sam shares stories about the personalities inside the clubhouse, discusses growing more comfortable in left field, and talks about hitting in front of Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami in the lineup. He also opens up about the pride he feels every time he puts on a White Sox uniform and why he believes fans have embraced the edge and mentality he brings to the field.

Transcript

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0:00.0	The White Sox podcast with Chuck Garfine is brought to you by Wind Creek, Chicago, Southland.
0:05.0	Are you ready for your winning moment? Find it at Wind Creek, Chicago, Southland, where the action never stops.
0:18.2	Hey, everybody, it's Chuck Garfine. Welcome to the White Sox podcast. It is brought to you by Wind Creek, Chicago, Southland. Now, the podcast today, it's conversation with one of the rookies on this team who is making a whole lot of noise, and that is Sam and Tanachi. You can look at his stats. He's got an on-base percentage of 373.
0:39.7	That is elite.
0:40.9	He has an OPS plus of 113.
0:43.3	That is above league average.
0:45.5	But if you talk about stats with Sam,
0:48.2	if you talk about analytics with Sam,
0:51.0	I'm talking like exit velocity,
0:52.9	launch angle,
0:57.1	he wants to hear nothing of it because,
1:04.1	believe it or not, he does not believe in it, as he's going to explain here on the podcast.
1:09.3	Also ahead, what's like learning to play left field essentially as a major leaguer,
1:12.6	the Southside mentality that I know all of you have,
1:15.5	and he has it coming out of his pores.
1:19.7	He'll speak about that and his relationship with Riku and Nishita.
1:22.0	They won a double-eight title together last year, and now they're teammates here in the major leagues.
1:24.5	A lot of good stuff on Riku Nishita.
1:27.1	So it's a conversation with
1:28.3	Sam Antinacci. He's back on the podcast as a major leaguer. Here we go.
1:38.0	I bought it deep way back. There's a blast. Steve to left.
1:44.4	Holy cow.
	...

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