The Cuban Miguel Vargas concluded his participation in the 2026 postseason by tying the historic record of the Chicago White Sox for the most walks received in a single postseason, with 10 walks, a record that had been held for 33 years by the legend Frank Thomas since 1993.
Vargas reached that figure during the American League Division Series against the Cleveland Guardians, where he accumulated 22 official at-bats, four hits, one home run, five runs scored, and an on-base percentage of .438, reported journalist Francys Romero on his platforms.
His most notable performance came in Game 4, when he got on base four times: he hit a home run and drew three walks, in a game that the White Sox lost 9-5.
Despite the individual performance of the Havana third baseman, Chicago was unable to maintain the lead it had built in the series.
The White Sox won the first two games —3-0 and 4-3—, but Cleveland came back with consecutive victories in games three, four, and five, the last of which took place with a score of 2-0 this Saturday, advancing to the American League Championship Series against the Tampa Bay Rays.
The elimination, however, did not overshadow what was an unprecedented recovery season in MLB history for the Chicago franchise.
The White Sox became the first team to qualify for the postseason after three consecutive seasons with 100 or more losses: 41-121 in 2024 —a modern league record—, 60-102 in 2025, and 84-78 in 2026.
The qualification was secured on September 24 with a 9-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals, and before the Divisional Series, the team had eliminated the Houston Astros in the wildcard round.
Vargas was the offensive engine of that comeback throughout the entire regular season, where he batted .250 with 33 home runs, 31 doubles, 93 runs batted in, 106 scored, 22 stolen bases, and 101 walks in 159 games.
With those numbers, the player from Havana became only the fourth third baseman in Major League history to record at least 30 doubles, 30 home runs, 20 stolen bases, and 100 walks in a single season.
He was also the first player in the history of the White Sox to combine 30 doubles, 30 home runs, 20 stolen bases, and 100 runs scored in a single season, and was selected for the All-Star Game for the first time in his career.
The postseason record that he now shares with Thomas—who set it at the age of 25—was achieved by Vargas at 26, placing his name alongside one of the greatest legends of the franchise.
Scott Podsednik, with seven walks in the 2005 postseason—the year Chicago won the World Series—holds the third place in that historical record.
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