Thursday, July 31

CHICAGO -- Anthony DePino enjoys playing golf.

Of course, he enjoys baseball more and is better at baseball, which is a good thing for the White Sox, who selected the power-packed third baseman/first baseman with the 196th pick overall (first in the seventh round) during the 2025 Draft. But watching golf helps better his diamond work, as he told me during a phone interview this weekend.

“I do a lot of stuff with watching professionals do whatever they are best at,” DePino said. “I watch a lot of Bryson DeChambeau; I watch a lot of golfers that are really good at what they do.

“That helps me with seeing how much work they put in, seeing how confident they are. I think that’s helped me a lot.”

At 22 and with four years at the University of Rhode Island behind him, DePino brings a veteran-like sensibility and understanding beyond his first foray into professional baseball during last week’s Draft camp at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. He was joined by the remainder of the 20-player ‘25 Draft class, led by shortstop Billy Carlson (No. 10 selection overall) and outfielder Jaden Fauske, the second-round selection who prepped at Nazareth Academy approximately 16 1/2 miles from Rate Field. This group, along with three undrafted free agents, is now taking part in an extended bridge camp at the same location.

If things go well for DePino and he stays healthy, a Minor League assignment could be possible in the next week or two. Director of player development Paul Janish and Minor League field/infielder coordinator Ryan Newman ran the camp, with director of hitting Ryan Fuller also lending his expertise.

“They have taught me more in the last week than I could have even imagined,” DePino said. “I feel like I already got miles better than I was coming in. The player development here is really good.

“There’s a lot of great baseball players in this Draft class, I can tell you that. You are around these guys, and it makes you feel like a better player.”

Carlson, Fauske, Rylan Galvan (13th round), Kaleb Freeman (16th round) and Colby Shelton (sixth round) are a few of the players pointed out by DePino as part of his hitting group.

But let’s not overlook DePino’s ability, with 65 career home runs over 948 plate appearances for Rhode Island, topped off by 20 homers, 21 doubles and 61 RBIs in ’25.

After what he deemed a rough sophomore season, when he hit .249 with an .854 OPS and struck out more than twice as much as he walked (51-24), DePino reinvented his offensive game.

“Controlling the strike zone has been huge for me,” he said. “Being able to take pitches on the corner, [you] kind of just say, ‘Whatever, you get three strikes for a reason.’ And then taking your walks because taking a lot of walks, it helps your average more than you can even know. That’s another big thing about sophomore year -- I didn’t walk a lot.

“This year I was like, ‘I’m going to walk more than I strike out, limit the strikeouts and walk a ton.’ That was big for me, too.”

After recording 57 walks and 42 strikeouts in ’25, DePino can only hope his plans work that perfectly at the professional level. He also added a speed component to his game, as the 5-foot-11, 218-pound right-handed hitter swiped 35 bags combined over the past two seasons and 21 in ’25.

“Obviously, I have an extra-base-hit focus. I like to slug,” DePino said. “But I was starting to get walked a lot more. I wanted to be able to be a guy that if you walk me, now it’s turning into a double. I wanted to take my game to a new level.”

Maybe he reached that high level by watching DeChambeau and other top golfers in action. He also watched plenty of Yankees baseball, as a native of New Haven, Conn., to enhance that excellence.

“Once I started to play in high school and college, it was watching Aaron Judge,” DePino said. “That’s just a guy you want to look at.

“He’s the best to do it right now. And yeah, he plays the game the right way, he carries himself the right way, and that’s what a professional looks like.”

Martín Pérez gave up home runs to Josh Rojas and Michael A. Taylor during a two-up live BP session prior to Monday’s game between the White Sox and Phillies. Never has the veteran left-hander been happier to surrender the long ball.

Pérez has been sidelined since April 18 with left elbow inflammation, but he told me during the Dodgers series at the start of July of his plans to be back on Major League mounds this season. He threw at full force on Monday, with his next step being a rehab assignment for Triple-A Charlotte starting Saturday.

Pérez hopes to rejoin the White Sox rotation after two or three outings.

“It was tough to believe in the process,” Pérez said. “That moment you don’t know if you are going to feel good or not. There was a couple of days when I was throwing and I [felt] it a little bit, but that is part of the rehab. The good thing is, now I don’t feel [anything].

“I was throwing my pitches with everything that I have. Was manipulating my hands really good, and everything is good. That’s a good step. Now it’s time for me to face hitters and get ready to pitch.”

• A special Robin Ventura “puffy shirt” Seinfeld bobblehead goes to the first 1,000 purchasers of a special ticket for tonight’s game. (The bobblehead is spectacular.) Monday’s theme was “Christmas in July,” right down to Christmas music at the stadium. 

• The White Sox drew more than 38,000 for all three weekend sellouts against the Cubs, with a total attendance of 115,230. The Crosstown Cup rivalry remains alive, although certainly buoyed by Cubs fans going to the South Side to support their (at the moment) playoff team.

• I have vacation starting Friday, but I’ll be continuing with the newsletters from my secret locale.

“Yeah, it was the right play for [Ian] Happ. We have to handle that differently. Can’t have an obstruction call there.” -- manager Will Venable, on Happ forcing contact with third baseman Colson Montgomery in the eighth inning on Sunday

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