Madrigal teased on birthday
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The White Sox had some fun with Nick Madrigal on his birthday. After the second baseman — who turned 24 on Friday — confidently said that 3,000 hits was an attainable feat, teammates took note and raised their ribbing to another level by wearing “Mr. 3000” T-shirts on the practice fields.
The shirts have Madrigal photoshopped into a picture of Bernie Mac, who starred in the 2004 film “Mr. 3000.” The movie is about a retired major-league player who makes a comeback at age 47 trying to reach 3,000 hits.
Shortstop Tim Anderson, right fielder Adam Eaton, first baseman Andrew Vaughn and Madrigal — who batted .340 in 109 plate appearances in his first season in 2020 — were among those wearing the shirts during drills.
“Just busting his chops a little,” one player said.
“We saw it this morning and thought it was actually great,” manager Tony La Russa said.
La Russa’s only concern was that Madrigal would take it the wrong way, but that didn’t appear to be the case.
“He’s a tough guy but there was a concern about whether he’d take it personal or have a good time with it,” La Russa said. “I think it was done with team respect and affection. It’s really a cute shirt, I mean, it’s very witty. I’ll put it in my diary of the camp.”
Madrigal, coming off shoulder surgery at the end of last season, is close to returning to game action and might play Monday, La Russa said.
“I’ve seen a lot of great hitters in this league growing up and watching guys,” Madrigal said on the White Sox Talk podcast. “The 3,000 mark is not easy at all, there’s very few people that do it. But I feel like that’s very reachable.
“I know that’s throwing a big statement out there, but I believe in myself and I know what it takes to play this game and I feel confident I can do that.”
No target yet for Grandal
Catcher Yasmani Grandal (right knee) is throwing some, has taken swings in the batting cage and is progressing each day, La Russa said, but still has no target date to play in a game.
“It’s just a slow progression because we have the time to do it,” general manager Rick Hahn said.
“I expect he should be fine. We went through a similar thing, a little something with his calf [last spring]. We took our time and it paid off over the course of the season.”
A message to the fans
Veteran catcher Jonathan Lucroy is impressed with the pitching staff. “White Sox fans, you have a lot to look forward to. This is a really good pitching staff,” Lucroy said.