Gamethread: White Sox at Mariners

You want to enjoy more Eloy Jimenez at-bats, you’re gonna have to earn them, because it could be 9 p.m. CST before he steps up to the plate. But something tells me the wait is gonna be worth it.

Time: 8:40 p.m. CST

Webcast: none

Radio: WGN 720

TV: MLB.TV

In B-game action vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers today, some fairly poor results from starter Miguel González, but the rest of the relief corps was smokin’ hot. Nate Jones and Luis Avilán have the makings of a killer back-end combination:

Ichiro is back in Seattle! Ichiro is my all-time favorite non-White Sox, I believe a taste I share with the SSS M.E. I’m so happy he’s still playing in the majors.

And either Gordon Beckham is petitioning for tons of revenge-game time or Seattle is really considering taking him north? To be fair, Bacon is tearing up the Cactus League, going 10-for-24 (.417) so far with a .517 on-base and 1.184 OPS (yeah, you read that right ... 397 points better than his career spring OPS).

OK, the lineups for tonight’s action:

And the full slate of pitchers scheduled to go for the White Sox:

Dylan Cease gets his second start of Cactus League play for the White Sox. So far this spring, his first with the White Sox, the 22-year-old righty has pitched in two games, with one start, throwing 3 ¹⁄₃ innings with five strikeouts, a 0.00 ERA and 1.20 WHIP. Another strong start, complete with his knee-buckling curve, could keep Cease on the fast track to Chicago, drafting right behind Michael Kopech.

His battery mate tonight is Zack Collins, getting some rare shine with the White Sox this spring. So far in Cactus play, the 2016 first-rounder is 1-for-7 with an RBI, slashing .143/.143/.143.

The White Sox face Seattle lefty Marco Gonzales, who has been scintillating so far this spring: 0-0 with nine innings pitched over three starts, a 0.00 ERA, nine Ks and a 0.89 WHIP. In his spring career, Gonzales is 3-3 in 14 games (nine starts) and 37 ²⁄₃ innings, with 25 strikeouts and a 1.33 WHIP.

It’s a promising start for Gonzales, who has had some rough results in his young career. He was dealt from his original club, the St. Louis Cardinals, to the M’s on July 21 of last year. Overall in 2017, Gonzales was 1-1 in 10 games (seven starts), with a 6.08 ERA (5.06 FIP) and -0.6 WAR. He has never faced the White Sox in regular season play.

And finally, some Injury news. In a welcome change, both updates are good ones!