The Chicago White Sox should benefit by having a few exhibition games ahead of this short 60 game season that they are about to grind.
The Chicago White Sox and the rest of Major League Baseball revealed their 60 game schedule on Monday afternoon. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, they had a long labor dispute that was really annoying to hear about all the time. Well, after all of that they finally came to an agreement on a 60 game schedule that had specific health protocols involved with the teams getting back on the field. Now, that schedule is revealed to the world and it came with three exhibition games.
The White Sox will play two of those games against the Chicago Cubs and then one against the Milwaukee Brewers ahead of their season opener against the Minnesota Twins. The first one against the Cubs will be at Wrigley Field on July 19th. The second one will be against the Cubs at Guaranteed Rate Field the next day on July 20th. They will have no game on the 21st and then they will play the Milwaukee Brewers on the 22nd at Guaranteed Rate Field.
All of these games will be broadcasted on NBC Sports Chicago which is awesome. All of the fans and media that won’t be able to be in attendance will be able to watch these exhibition games from home which isn’t always a guarantee during normal Spring Training. It will be nice to be able to watch and evaluate what we see from the comfort of our own homes.
It is also good for these guys to see a real opponent ahead of the beginning of the real games. They are going to be at it every day practicing and doing simulated games but nothing beats the real thing. Even though they aren’t the same as games that count in the standings for a variety of reasons, they are better than practicing against your teammates.
The White Sox (and every other team) should be as ready as they can for the short season by the time these three exhibition games are completed. There is still a bit of time before the season gets underway but the schedule coming out is a good sign.