Adios Arizona

The White Sox have finished spring training with a Cactus League record of 8-19-2, and jetted off to Atlanta for two more exhibition contests with the Braves.

Matt Thornton again looked very good again today, putting out a bases loaded fire in the 5th inning. I don't know I'm willing to concede that Don Cooper has "fixed" Thornton yet, but the early returns are impressive. Since he stayed behind to work with Coop during the Sox 3-game road trip, he has displayed a much smoother delivery, allowing  2 hits in 5IP while walking just 1 and striking out 4. Five innings is a small sample size, but it's all we have right now.

Thornton is still not a good pitcher, but at least he's not a terrible one now. It appears that he should be at least a league-average innings eater at the back of the pen, with the possibility to turn into something more. It is pretty fun seeing some M's fans starting to wring their hands over this, though I'm sure they'll also be the first to celebrate when Thornton blows a 5-run lead.

According to 670 The Score, Scott Podsednik will not be making the trip to Atlanta, opting to stay in Arizona and play in a few minor league games. -- This is troubling news because it's most likely a precursor to Pods being retroactively added to the DL. If Pods is experiencing the same the type of injury that slowed him last season, that's probably the best option. He needs to be completely healthy to be effective.