GLENDALE, Ariz. — The signs of spring were on display Tuesday at Camelback Ranch.
Pitcher Jonathan Cannon was at the facility, chatting with teammates. Catching prospect Kyle Teel made his way to the backfields, preparing to take the next step in his development.
After a 2024 that was historical for all the wrong reasons, the Chicago White Sox are preparing for a new season with a new manager in Will Venable.
“Every year, you learn something new,” general manager Chris Getz said Tuesday. “And I think going through a year like we did in 2024, most importantly it just provided a lot of clarity for a lot of people — including myself. We had a lot of work to do, a lot more changes that needed to be made.
“And we were able to accomplish a lot of that this offseason and that started with hiring Will Venable. We feel fortunate to have him as a leader in our clubhouse and (to) be able to surround him with what we feel like (is) the right support to ultimately go out there and get our players better.”
The White Sox won just 41 games last season while setting a modern-day major-league record with 121 losses. There was plenty of turnover along the way and more changes in the offseason.
“You look at our record last year, we want to win more games this year,” Getz said. “What exactly is that amount? Time will tell. All I know is from an infrastructure standpoint, from a talent standpoint, we’re in a much better place.”
It’s an organization that has six players ranked among the top 100 prospects in baseball, according to MLB.com, in pitchers Noah Schultz (No. 16) and Hagen Smith (No. 34), catchers Teel (No. 32) and Edgar Quero (No. 66), outfielder Braden Montgomery (No. 55) and shortstop Colson Montgomery (No. 39).
“It’s going to be enjoyable to see some of these younger players get major-league experience, so to speak, (at camp),” Getz said.
Colson Montgomery is aiming for a spot on the 26-man roster, one of the position battles to watch this spring.
“There’s a fair amount of competition,” Getz said. “I would say the majority of our roster has to earn their opportunities. I think that makes for a healthy, productive camp. You look across our infield, you look at our catching situation, look at our starting staff and our bullpen, there’s opportunity here. We don’t have a lot of positions that are set in stone.
“So I think the players, they’re up for the challenge of wanting to go out there and show us what they’re capable of doing. And I think we’re going to reap those benefits this year.”
Teel — one of the four players the Sox received in the deal that sent starter Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox — and Quero are part of a catching mix that also includes returning starter Korey Lee and new addition Matt Thaiss (acquired from the Cubs).
“There’s plenty of depth there,” Getz said. “We’ve got a handful of guys that don’t have a ton of experience, and I think this major-league camp’s going to be really valuable, getting them to work with our pitching coaches to put our pitchers in the best position come opening day.”
While Getz said it will be “fun to watch them pitch in major-league camp,” he doesn’t anticipate Schultz — who spent time at Class A Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham last season — or 2024 first-round pick Smith to break with the team out of spring training.
“Noah was able to have 90-plus innings last year, which was a big step for him,” Getz said. “We’re going to continue to build on that. Getting him closer to what it’s going to be like in a major-league season is what we’ve set out to do this year so we can look up in ’26 and pencil him in as a starter for our major-league club.”
As for this year’s big-league club, Getz said the expectation is for Luis Robert Jr. to be the team’s opening-day starter in center field. Robert has been mentioned in trade speculation during the offseason.
Getz recognizes the trade chatter is part of where the Sox are right now in their rebuild.
“I certainly want to be standing here talking about competing for the division and having a playoff run, but right now we’re focused on shaping our roster and really helping these guys to be productive major-league players,” Getz said. “We don’t want to be looking to move players, we want players that will be here a long time, that’s our goal.
“Are you always going to have to find ways to be creative and add to your team? Without question. Eventually, we’ll get to that point, but right now we’re focused on the group here and putting together a 26-man roster.”
Injury updates
Getz said starter Drew Thorpe is “feeling really good” after dealing with what the Sox called “residual inflammation.”
“He had some soreness this offseason that slowed down some of his throwing program,” Getz said. “He’s playing catch right now. He’ll be on a mound here shortly. We do expect him to be a little behind some of these other starters, but with that being said, we feel like he’s going to be active throughout spring training.”
Lefty Ky Bush, who made four starts for the Sox last season, is scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery on Wednesday. Infielder Bryan Ramos has “some elbow soreness,” Getz said, but has been cleared to hit.
“We’re going to be very mindful of his workload,” Getz said of Ramos. “But we plan on him being a full participant this season.”