Ahead of what became the great ending to the World Baseball Classic, the Chicago White Sox played a Cactus League game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday afternoon. What went on in that game might excite Sox fans as they get ready for a very important 2023 season.
Winning doesn't matter in spring training but it is better than losing, especially when a few key players look good while helping them do so.
Lucas Giolito got the start for the White Sox in this game and he pitched fairly well. After his rough (by his standards) 2022 season, there are going to be a lot of eyes on him and his play. That is also largely because a lot of money is on the line for him this year. He'd be wise to have a good year.
In this one, he had 4.1 innings pitched where he gave up two runs on one hit and two walks. He had six strikeouts in those 4.1 innings so it wasn't a bad outing at all. There is still work to be done but this was a fine game as he progresses through some things this spring.
The Chicago White Sox did what they needed to do to get a win here.
The White Sox ended up giving up another three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning but they had six runs on the board so they held on for the Cactus League win over Milwaukee. They are now 10-9 in spring training.
The offense started for the White Sox on the first pitch of the game as Romy Gonzalez hit it very far for a 1-0 lead. We also saw Adam Haseley and Gavin Sheets go deep as they try to be noticed ahead of the finalization of the roster. Everyone pulled their own weight in this one.
This wasn't a loaded lineup but it did had some of the well known players and a lot of different guys made their way into it. 24 players (position player or pitcher) made their way into the game so it was cool to see everyone try to make an impact. That is what the spring is all about.
Now that the WBC is over, the White Sox are going to start coming together to be ready for Opening Day next week. There is, as mentioned before, some work to do but the clock is ticking. The next Cactus League game is Wednesday with Davis Martin scheduled to start.