Jake Burger slugged two dwelling runs for the Chicago White Sox in a 6-5 Cactus League loss to the San Diego Padres on Saturday on the Peoria Sports Complex.
Burger hit a two-run homer within the fourth and a solo shot within the eighth. He has 4 dwelling runs and 6 RBIs this spring.
Oscar Colás hit his first homer of the spring, a towering blast to proper, as a pinch hitter within the ninth.
“It was special,” Colás mentioned by an interpreter. “I wasn’t looking for homers before, it just happened this time.”
Colás, vying for a roster spot and competing for the opening in proper area, is hitting .407. The Sox have proven their energy lately with 12 homers of their final 11 Cactus League video games.
Here are three extra takeaways from Saturday at Sox camp.
1. Pedro Grifol sees the rotation as a staff strengths
The rookie supervisor likes how his rotation stacks up.
“History says if you have a good starting rotation, good things should happen,” he mentioned Saturday morning. “We have a good starting rotation, so it’s obviously a strength of this ballclub.”
The group consists of Dylan Cease, Lucas Giolito, Lance Lynn, Michael Kopech and Mike Clevinger.
“I feel all five guys are legitimate major-league starters that can do a lot of good things and have done good things in the game,” Grifol mentioned. “And they’re more than capable of going deep in games. And familiarity, even though it’s a big factor in the game, they’ve proven they can handle familiarity over the years.”
Grifol obtained his first have a look at Clevinger in a Cactus League sport. The right-hander allowed two runs on 4 hits and struck out 4 in 2⅔ innings in opposition to his former staff.
“The more times you get out there, the more I’m going to get synced up with (catcher Yasmani Grandal) back there, and there was some good stuff,” Clevinger mentioned. “Metrics on the stuff is really good. It’s just about sequencing and getting more reps.”
He had beforehand pitched two innings in a B sport March 5 in opposition to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Before the sport, Grifol mentioned of Clevinger’s spring work: “He’s been there before, he’s done it, he knows how to navigate 162 (games), he knows how to navigate 30-plus starts, he’s healthy, he feels good, he’s strong. I’m curious to see over the course of the year coming back from the (Tommy John surgery) a couple years ago how it plays out, but right now he’s as strong and as good as I’ve ever seen him and I saw him in Cleveland (from 2016-20).”
2. 3B prospect Bryan Ramos continues to indicate strides
Ramos is all the time pondering “make good contact.”
The third baseman linked for a two-run homer within the fifth inning of Friday’s 4-3 victory in opposition to the Cubs at Sloan Park.
“I’m not looking for a homer,” Ramos mentioned Saturday morning. “That just happened. I was pretty comfortable with that pitch. I was on time.”
Ramos, the No. 3 prospect within the Sox group in keeping with MLB.com, has 5 RBIs this spring.
“He’s got all the tools to play up here and he’s young (turning 21 on Sunday),” Grifol mentioned. “Let’s just continue his development now and getting him comfortable to this speed and the details to the game up here.”
He went 0-for-2 with a stroll Saturday and is hitting .386. Added to the 40-man roster final fall, Ramos is studying with every day.
“There’s always something new to work out and keep improving myself as a player,” he mentioned.
3. A wholesome Joe Kelly is pitching with a goal
Kelly allowed one hit and had one strikeout in a scoreless inning Saturday. Last month, the reliever described being wholesome at the beginning of camp as “game-changing.”
Saturday was his third outing of the spring. He has allowed one run on three hits and has two strikeouts in three innings.
“It’s been a while (2020) since I played in these things with a purpose, especially getting ready for the season,” Kelly mentioned. “Usually my goal is to throw to hitch the staff in some unspecified time in the future the final couple of years.
“Now (I’m) trying to get everything a little bit more sharp. I feel like my body’s there. Just time everything up a little better.”
Kelly has preferred how the bullpen has progressed this spring.
“Everyone looking sharp and crisp,” he mentioned.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com
