Sunday, May 03

SAN DIEGO -- Mike Vasil is a pitcher, although the White Sox right-hander currently is sidelined for the 2026 season as he rehabs his way back from Tommy John surgery. 

Vasil also considers himself Batman, as verified by the mask hanging in his clubhouse locker at Rate Field. But now Vasil is … a wizard? 

Stay with me on this one, as it needs a little explaining. 

This story first broke when Vasil appeared on the Baseball Isn’t Boring show with Rob Bradford. A bunch of White Sox players were talking among themselves recently, and Vasil brought up the possibility of casting spells on the other team. 

Fellow reliever Jordan Leasure presented him with the needed wand the following day. That wand is now with Vasil at Petco Park, as he showed me prior to Friday’s 8-2 win over the Padres, basically because the White Sox are 4-0 since its arrival. 

“Amazon,” said Leasure with a smile, when asked how the wand arrived so quickly. “It was like 20 bucks. I don’t even remember.” 

“I guess I’m some sort of a wizard now in my free time,” Vasil said. “I might be some kind of witch. I might have some witchcraft in there. I might have some magic, I don’t know.” 

Maybe the world has underestimated the 26-year-old from Boston. Sure, he was a successful jack of all trades on the mound for the 2025 White Sox, posting a 5-3 record, and a 2.50 ERA over 47 games and 101 innings pitched. He was in competition for the ’26 starting rotation before suffering the setback on March 14 after 3 2/3 scoreless innings hurled against the Dodgers. 

There’s little doubt his on-field work has been missed and highly valued. But Vasil might have special powers well beyond his six-pitch mix. It’s the sort of special powers mere mortals can’t totally comprehend. 

He’s Batman. He’s a knock-off Harry Potter. Most importantly, he’s helping this team win. 

“No, no, He’s still there. It’s just he’s in his cave right now,” said Vasil, when asked if Batman had been replaced. “He’s at home right now. But right now, I’m a little bit of a wizard. I also might have some kind of disorder where I think I’m multiple people at one time. I haven’t figured it out yet.” 

“A lot of it is just for him to be able to fire up the team, get something going. It’s a long season,” said Leasure, who referred to Vasil as a “very good storyteller.” “It’s easy to kind of put your head down and go through the motions, but when you have something fun going on, it makes it a lot more fun.” 

Those people who don’t feel Vasil has had an impact on this team’s 15-17 record this season, even without throwing a pitch, don’t know much about Vasil’s personality. Let’s put the wand aside for a moment -- even with fear of retribution from Vasil’s mystical forces -- and focus on why White Sox players and coaches wanted Vasil with them all season as he went through rehab work. 

“We just had a pitchers meeting and Vas is an active participant,” manager Will Venable said. “In the dugout before the game, he’s actively getting the guys going and just is a great source of energy for our club.  

“Really, all day long. So, that’s why we kept him around. We know the impact he has on our players and on our coaches. He has been great.” 

Is Vasil also a little eccentric, a little crazy, in the best sort of way? 

“Yeah, like baseball crazy,” a smiling Venable said. “He’s a great baseball guy.” 

“Realistically, it’s everyone else on the field. Whatever it takes for anyone to believe, to get it done, why not?” said Vasil, revealing a behind-the-scenes look at the true root of his magic. “I like to think that I can sometimes try to just hope for something good to happen so much that it happens.” 

 As for the ongoing recovery, Vasil’s range of motion has come back nicely, and the trainers have had only good things to say about the right-hander’s work. He’s hitting checkmarks throughout the way and seems to be on the right path. 

About the wand and Vasil’s powers behind it, there were only plans to use it for baseball as of Friday’s pregame interview. 

“I haven’t tried it in terms of the stock market or maybe a scratch ticket from the gas station,” Vasil said. “Maybe I’ll try that next. 

“Just show up every day, and know my role is to rehab and get healthy and get back on the field, but also play a role in the clubhouse and keeping the vibes right, keeping the guys loose. Anything I can do to help these guys out and make it more enjoyable for them every day, that’s what I’m here to do.” 

• Venable didn’t put a timetable on outfielder Everson Pereira’s return from a right pectoral strain. He spoke of giving him a couple of days to respond to treatment and then build a plan. 

• There are many great Major League Baseball stadiums from the East to the West and everywhere in between. Petco Park might be the best, as I’ve said before. 

• Do you want a bold prediction as May begins? The White Sox will be leading the American League Central by June 1. I’m not saying they will be there at year’s end, but this team is going to build on that April momentum. 

• Here’s a question I asked Friday on social media: If you are traveling for more than one or two days, do you unpack everything upon hitting the hotel or live out of your suitcase? I’m all about unpacking immediately. 

“They sell out all the time and they have a $200-something million payroll and win a bunch of games. Not quite what we had going on when I got here.” – Venable, on the different vibe around the Padres compared to when he played in San Diego from 2008-15

“What’s the context to make you think that? He’s doing a great job.” – a smiling director of player development Paul Janish, when asked if standout infielder Caleb Bonemer would be promoted from High-A Winston-Salem after a three-homer game delivered by the No. 53 prospect overall per MLB Pipeline 

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