Sam Antonacci Wins Fitting White Sox Award

Each year, one player across Major League Baseball is presented with the Heart and Hustle Award, an honor created in 2005 by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association. The award is voted on by alumni and active Major League Baseball players and is presented to the one player in baseball "who demonstrates a passion for the game and best embodies its values, spirit, and traditions."

There are 30 different committees comprised of alumni with relationships to each team. Those committees select one player every year to be the team's representative based on the criteria of passion, desire, and work ethic demonstrated on the field. The fans, players, and alumni then collectively vote among those 30 nominees to select the final winner of the Heart and Hustle Award.

Very rarely has the representative of the Chicago White Sox had a legitimate chance to take home the award. The organization hasn't been known for being a team that plays with heart or hustle over the last few very dark years, and it shows with the team's nominee. In 2025, veteran outfielder Michael A. Taylor was chosen as the White Sox representative. In 2024, it was Andrew Vaughn. Before that, it was Andrew Benintendi, Jose Abreu, and the recently retired Tim Anderson back in 2021.

It was announced on Wednesday afternoon that rookie outfielder Sam Antonacci would be Chicago's representative in 2026, and there couldn't have been a better choice.

The 2026 White Sox have a much different energy and spunk to them each day they show up to the ballpark. And Antonacci is the embodiment of that spirit.

He's always hustling. He's always putting himself second to put the team first, which is on display every day when the natural shortstop runs out to left field. Antonacci leads the American League with 21 hit by pitches. He finds a way to get on base and posts a .366 OBP, which is neck and neck with Munetaka Murakami for the team lead.

Antonacci has a .833 OPS in White Sox wins this season. As he goes, the team often goes. He's also done a tremendous job coming off the bench, with a 1.026 OPS as a substitute and a 1.155 OPS in pinch hit scenarios. He's batting .367 with a .992 OPS in 73 plate appearances with a runner in scoring position. And he has a .309 batting average in situations deemed to be "high leverage."

Sam Antonacci is a winning player. He does the little things well. He seems keenly aware of his job and executes that job with regularity. And while his teammates are on record saying he's a soft spoken guy in the clubhouse, he often feels like the heart of this White Sox team when he steps between the lines.

There's no better selection for the White Sox Heart and Hustle Award representative.