Monday, February 24

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Questions will arise, from friends and family alike, for a stalwart on a Major League Baseball team losing 121 times to set a Modern Era record (since 1901), as the White Sox did in 2024.

Luckily for left fielder Andrew Benintendi, who fits the above stalwart description, his support system knows better.

“You get some of that, but the people I surround myself with, friends and family, they know what to ask and what not to ask and they kind of let that one be,” said Benintendi, speaking prior to Monday’s first full-squad Spring Training workout. “Yeah, it’s difficult, but it’s baseball and you turn the page.”

A great deal of page-turning already has taken place for the White Sox, and they aren’t quite one week into camp. Those players remaining from 2024 fully comprehend what transpired last season, and they aren’t trying to dodge the results. They simply have moved on to the next challenge.

The White Sox were designed to contend behind first-year manager Pedro Grifol when Benintendi joined the team via a five-year, franchise-high $75 million free-agent deal leading into the 2023 campaign. They won the ’21 American League Central title, and despite an eventful and uneven ’22 campaign, finished at .500.

Since 2023, the White Sox have lost 222 times and have moved on from Grifol to interim manager Grady Sizemore to new manager Will Venable. That sort of failure could lead an accomplished presence such as Benintendi, 30, who won the ’18 World Series with Boston, to ask for a change of scenery.

But that’s not how Benintendi approaches this situation.

“When I signed here, I signed for five years knowing there would be ups and downs, but I’m here for it and my job is to perform,” said Benintendi, who has three years, $47.5 million remaining on his deal. “Last year, I didn’t do that. 

“Not only do I feel like I let the fans and team down, but myself. You have such high expectations going into a season, and when you don’t hit them it’s frustrating. You have to keep going.”

No room for error existed for the White Sox entering the 2024 campaign, and all they had was error at the outset. Luis Robert Jr., Eloy Jiménez and Yoán Moncada all suffered significant injuries, while Andrew Vaughn and Benintendi struggled throughout the first half.

To the credit of Vaughn and Benintendi, they had much stronger second halves. 

After slashing .201/.258/.311 with seven home runs and 26 RBIs over 75 games before the All-Star break, Benintendi slashed .263/.328/.502 with 13 homers and 38 RBIs in 60 games post All-Star break. He was between a leg lift and a toe tap within his swing in the first half, but he stuck with the top tap in the second half and found consistency and timing.

During those struggles, his dad, along with assistance from the hitting coaches, became his ultimate sounding board.

“He knows [my swing] probably better than me, and he watches every game,” Benintendi said. “He’ll chime in here and there, tell me what he sees and sometimes I resent him for it: ‘Why are you swinging at that curveball in the dirt? It’s a bounced fastball.’ He knows my swing the best, and bouncing ideas off him has helped.”

Venable has the left-handed-hitting Benintendi penciled in as a middle-of-the-order presence on an everyday basis in 2025, while being mindful of workload. 

“I’m really excited that he's coming in healthy and feeling good,” Venable said. “I'm looking forward to him picking up where he left off last year.”

A White Sox Ballpark Pass is being offered for a limited time, geared toward the early portion of the 2025 season. It’s a flexible ticket package for all home games in March, April and May, including Opening Day, and can be purchased now at whitesox.com/pass. 

It’s available for $125 and guarantees tickets to 27 home games, including games against Minnesota, Boston, Milwaukee and Houston, among others. The package provides tickets to fans delivered 24 hours prior to each game, with fans then having the option to forward their tickets to friends and family via the MLB Ballpark App or Ticketmaster Account Manager and upgrade seats by visiting Rate Field’s advance ticket window.

• It was great to see Jermaine Dye in camp Monday, with the 2005 World Series Most Valuable Player lending his expertise. 

• When I arrived last Sunday to my Spring Training hotel, which is a wonderful place to stay and has truly wonderful people running it, there was a message on the television saying, “Good evening, Scott,” followed by acknowledgement of my Marriott Status. By Tuesday, the message said, “Welcome, Brad,” and then changing to “Welcome, Miguel” on Thursday and eventually “Bon Voyage, Jose” on Sunday and “Welcome, Deiandre” on Monday. It’s a funny quirk, but I feel as if my identity has been erased.

• Best of luck to Tommy Viola, who is leaving the Triple-A Charlotte Knights. Those are some massive media-relations shoes to fill, as he was always top-notch with his work and assistance.

• Spring Training doesn’t really begin until a television cameraman taps me on the shoulder to indicate I’ve moved into the shot. It took one week for that to happen this year. No harm, no foul.

• It’s always nice to see Michigan men’s basketball and baseball ranked. It’s even nicer to see any Michigan team beat Ohio State.

“Get to know each other. We have a lot of new faces here and we are trying to build that family vibe here. That’s the main goal right now.” -- Robert Jr., through interpreter Billy Russo, on his overarching goal for White Sox camp

“I’m still looking forward to going back. I’m not putting it out of the picture yet. I even told them I’m not done out there yet. I think I put together a helluva team this winter, and I was looking forward to seeing what we were able to do.” -- Bobby Jenks, who is battling Stage 4 Adenocarcinoma, which he described as a form of stomach cancer, on his desire to return for a second season as manager for the Frontier League’s Windy City Thunderbolts

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