Chicago Sports Exchange, Baseball Edition: Pleasant Surprises Pepper First Exhibition Games
Sox feel things out in opening week of Arizona play, Cubs look for sparks
So you’re saying there’s a chance?
On Tuesday, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot suggested Wrigley Field and Guaranteed Rate Field will host actual four-dimensional fans some time this year after initial discussions with the residents of both parks.
While Lightfoot couldn’t provide a specific time-frame for when Chicago’s boys of summer can play in front of flesh and blood fans again instead of their cardboard counterparts, the fact that the city is in discussions with the Cubs and White Sox should excite fans as much as Opening Day being just a month away.
BUY - White Sox Saying “F-It” To Any Early Spring Training Stress
Maybe it’s the swelling of expectations.
Maybe it’s the ruckus of South Siders licking their chops in anticipation of a promising season.
Maybe it’s Tim Anderson’s proclamation that they’re the best team in the American League.
Whatever it is, this crop of White Sox Cactus League games seem even more of a tease than usual.
Nonetheless, Tony La Russa still needs to settle on a starting pitching rotation, a primary challenge as he feels out his new team.
In regard to the former, both Garrett Crochet and Michael Kopech figure to eventually ascend to the frontlines but will likely work in relief this season given their innings limits. That leaves Jonathan Stiever, Jimmy Lambert, Carlos Rodon, and Reynaldo Lopez to vie for the right to back aces Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel and Lance Lynn.
Stiever impressed in his first start of spring training Friday.
As for La Russa, questions that arose about how the 76-year-old manager would mesh with this cast of spirited characters when he was hired in October now seem downright trivial. Theirs is a mutual respect that bridges the three-time World Series champion and hall-of-fame skipper to a club on the come that pulls no punches in revealing where its sights are set.
It’s no coincidence then that most everybody’s eyes are on them.
BUY - Cubs Supplying Fireworks To Highlight Early Efforts
The sound from Joc Pederson’s bat was undeniable.
As the pitch it connected with darted into right-center field, it didn’t just give the Cubs an early 2-0 lead against Seattle in a game that would end in an 8-8 tie Wednesday. It was the first jolt of power from a lineup that needs to bring more juice this season.
With budget cuts presumably skimming the formidably of their starting pitching rotation, the Cubs have little room for last year’s short circuiting—the most damning of which resulted in them notching two or fewer runs in eight of their last 12 games, including the National League Wild Card series.
So lighting up the scoreboard for eight runs with Anthony Rizzo supplying a home run of his own in the Cubs’ first nine-inning affair of spring training is a welcome sign.
As was Nico Hoerner both singling and doubling in two of his three at-bats against Kansas City Tuesday.
If the 23-year-old sure-fielding second baseman, whose feet may be more firmly planted in the big leagues with the Triple-A season delayed until May, can make some headway at the plate as his more entrenched teammates—Kris Bryant, Javy Baez, Willson Contreras, Jason Heyward, and Rizzo—find their own swings, fans may actually go from shrugging their shoulders to raising their eyebrows at the Cubs.
Drew Stevens is a Senior Writer for WARR Media, he lives and works in Chicago