GLENDALE, Ariz. — Left-hander Dallas Keuchel got pulled in the first inning and he wasn’t happy about it.
“Heated” is how he described his feelings when White Sox manager Tony La Russa took the ball from him during the Royals’ four
Turns out, his day wasn’t done. After Danny Dopico from the minor league minicamp recorded the third out of Keuchel’s messy first — his first inning of Cactus League action Thursday — Keuchel re-entered the Sox’ game against the Royals. He wasn’t aware he could do that.
“[Pitching coach] Ethan [Katz] came up to me pretty quickly and said, ‘Hey, relax, you’re going back out there’ and I was like, ‘What?’ “ Keuchel said.
La Russa didn’t want Keuchel, charged with four runs in the first, to labor through a long inning, but the former Cy Young winner lined up to follow Opening Day starter Lucas Giolito in the rotation labored some more. He needed 54 pitches (33 strikes) to get through 2 1/3 innings and allowed five earned runs on five hits and two walks. He hit one batter and struck out one.
“I really don’t take much out of this other than I got some work in,” said Keuchel, who had pitched only in live batting practice and side sessions before Thursday. “I am pretty tired right now and I basically barely got through three.”
Keuchel made some good pitches but couldn’t string them together.
“We’ll just keep going,” he said.
Grandal’s first game
Catcher Yasmani Grandal, who twisted his right knee in drills three weeks ago, started for the first time behind the plate, catching three innings.
Grandal still considers himself day to day but said he is pain free.
“I hope we can get on track [for Opening Day],” he said. “It’s going to be, how much workload can we get in and seeing how the knee reacts. So far it’s been good, but we’re definitely not going to be pushing it too hard, just in case.
Limited to designated hitter before Thursday, Grandal batted second with Yoan Moncada continuing to bat fourth in manager La Russa’s lineups.
“I like somebody who is effective in that second spot,” La Russa said. “And you can have a different profile. My favorite is the damage, the guy who can get an extra base hit, with a guy like [Jose] Abreu behind him, pitcher’s in a dilemma. Probably the thing against him would be speed. He’s an OK runner but he’s not as quick as some of the guys we might consider there.”
The backup competition
Veteran Jonathan Lucroy has been viewed as the favorite to win the No. 2. catcher’s job but Zack Collins took a team best 1.110 OPS into the game over 26 plate appearances with only one strikeout, and has shown signs of improvement defensively.
“He’s done a good job,” La Russa said of the Sox’ 2016 first-round draft choice. “Raises the competition because he’s playing so well.”
Collins, who bats left, owns a .167/.286/.314 hitting line over 120 plate appearances so considering him for regular DH duty would probably be a stretch.
“Think about it a little bit, but not a lot,” La Russa said.
Sox 9, Royals 7
Flashing power
After Dallas Keuchel’s rocky Cactus League debut in which he allowed five runs over 2 1⁄3 innings, the Sox (5-9-4) threw three of their young, big arms at the Royals. Michael Kopech (two strikeouts, two walks) worked multiple innings for the first time and allowed his first run in three outings. Garrett Crochet pitched a perfect inning and Codi Heuer (0.00 ERA) pitched a perfect eighth and ninth with three strikeouts.
Engel’s near cycle
Adam Engel hit his second homer of the spring and was a single shy of the cycle. Andrew Vaughn also hit his second homer, a 429-foot shot against Ervin Santana. And in a B game against the Padres, Cuban prospect Yoelqui Cespedes hit a three-run homer and drove in a fourth run with a double.
Clean it up
Shortstop Tim Anderson committed his fourth error on a routine ground ball with a throw well over first baseman Jose Abreu’s head. Left fielder Eloy Jimenez overran a soft single by Chris Taylor, who was awarded a generous double. Danny Mendick, playing shortstop, committed his first error while seeing his average dip to .103 on an 0-for-2 day.
Billy Ball
Recent acquisition Billy Hamilton, getting at-bats as the DH, walked and slashed a two-run double to right field and was a nuisance on the bases, drawing a throw to second by Salvador Perez on a dropped third strike, darting to third and safely avoiding a tag. He then slid home safely on a passed ball.
On deck
Sox at Mariners, 8:40 p.m. Friday, Peoria, Lance Lynn vs. Marco Gonzales.
—Daryl Van Schouwen
.jpg?w=600)
