White Sox Camp Notes 3.16.19

Good morning from Glendale!

White Sox camp continues and they'll face their complex mates the Dodgers in an afternoon game today from the Valley of the Sun.

Ivan Nova will make the start today, it will be his third of the Spring. Nova is 0-1, with a 9.00 ERA. While on that subject, the numbers in the Cactus League don't mean a whole lot. Many pitchers will tell you that they are working on one specific pitch or one location per inning, regardless of the situation. So don't expect a guy to be feeding fastballs low and in to a lefty while ahead in the count during the regular season. This is what this exhibition season is all about, getting reps, building up arm strength and innings.

Same is true for numbers offensively, for many of the same reasons. The sky is tough here in Arizona. The ground is hard and unforgiving on a fielder. So many of the 'hits' that are credited to batters may not be on a perfectly manicured infield in the big leagues.

I realize baseball is all about stats and numbers, but that's not exactly what the decision makers are truly looking at when it comes to the final roster.

Numbers were not the downfall of Eloy Jimenez this camp. Ricky Renteria hinted at it yesterday and Jimenez himself admitted to it today, he was pressing at the plate.

Eloy Jimenez
(MLB/MILB)

"I tried to do too much, I think that's why I didn't have the good results," said Jimenez. "I'm going to keep working and I'm going
to try and control that (pressing)."

Now as far as what he thought about his timing being off. Jimenez said he's never dealt with that issue before.  "Not really, its the first time. It was good that it happened here in Spring Training." Jimenez says the White Sox haven't told him specifically what they want him to do in Charlotte. He added that he'll work on his total game, offense, defense and running the bases.

Lineup for today's 3:05 game vs. Dodgers, Camelback Ranch - NO RADIO TODAY

Daniel Palka - RF today(White Sox)

Leury Garcia   LF
Yoan Moncada 3B
Jose Abreu  1B
Yonder Alonso DH
Daniel Palka RF
Welington Castillo C
Yolmer Sanchez 2B
Tim Anderson SS
Adam Engel CF
Ivan Nova P


More later on WGN Radio.

Arizona, Hello!

So here I am, finally made it to Arizona after a few travel headaches yesterday. It's great to be back in the Valley of the Sun for Spring Training. The last time I was here was 2014, just before moving back to Chicago to start my second stint with the folks at WGN.

Today, the White Sox face the Cubs in a Cactus League game here at Camelback Ranch. We have the broadcast for you starting at 3:05 on WGN Radio. Ed Farmer and Darrin Jackson will have the call, I'll stop by the booth in the bottom of the third inning and stick around in the 4th. Looking forward to that very much.

I poked my head into the clubhouse this morning and saw some of the new faces on this Sox team. Among them Yonder Alonso and Jon Jay, who were lockered by each other in one of the corners of the clubhouse.

James McCann (MLB)

I also met new catcher James McCann, who joined me for a few brief moments before a team meeting. Here are some of the things I gleaned from the conversation:
- He is very much looking forward to working with the young pitching staff of the White Sox...
- McCann was very happy to be staying in the division, due to a familiarity with it and the teams...
- He and Welington Castillo have already formed a good relationship...

Manager Ricky Renteria spoke to us before the game today and mentioned that he was happy to see what Eloy Jimenez did in camp. He said that Jimenez was going to go down to AAA and work on his timing at the plate and some of his defense as well. But Renteria has no doubt that Jimenez is still on track to do some work in the big leagues soon.

We'll have today's game, along with Sunday, Monday and Tuesday of next week on the air on WGN, so make a note of that.

Here's the staring lineup for today's game with the Cubs (3:05 CDT)

Leury Garcia  RF
Brandon Guyer LF
Jose Abreu 1B
James McCann C
Yonder Alonso DH
Yoan Moncada 3B
Tim Anderson SS
Yolmer Sanchez 2B
Adam Engel CF
Lucas Giolito P



Notes:
The Chicago Blackhawks announced that Jim Thome will drop the ceremonial puck at the Hawks/Canucks game at the United Center Monday night.  Fans are invited to attend a special pregame celebration in the UC Atrium. Since Thome hit 612 home runs, the first 612 fans to the atrium that night will receive a commemorative t-shirt.

Roster Moves: Outright Juan Minaya to Charlotte re-assigned to minor league camp, Randall Delgado also re-assigned to minor league camp. Sox 40 man roster stands at 39 now.