The White Sox's 60-man player pool is still hovering around 44, but whenever they fill out the rest of it, we know where most of those guys will be.
The club announced this morning that they gave the OK to Boomers Stadium in Schaumburg, which will be the alternative training site for the players not on the active roster. The stadium, which opened in 1999 and has been modified by the White Sox to make it suitable for all the activity, will host workouts, practices and intrasquad games starting on July 15.
The White Sox detailed the arrangement in a press release. The stadium enhancements include:
- Installing an all-weather hitting and pitching tunnel in right field;
- Full upgrade of the playing field to MLB dimensions and specifications;
- Conversion of the suite level “Schaumburg Club” to a strength and conditioning area for player use;
- Renovation of the clubhouses and training areas to meet social distancing protocols;
- Creation of multiple food service areas, including on-site dining and “to go” options;
- Two health screening and testing locations for players and staff.
As for the things fans would probably like to know, the club said that workouts will be closed to the public. Also, the remainder of the 60-player pool will likely be unveiled next week when the team announces a list of players designated for Schaumburg.
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The White Sox also announced their 2021 schedule today, the timing of which confused me since 2020's schedule doesn't even feel all that sound. Then I saw Phillies beat writer Matt Gelb say that teams are trying to get season-ticket holders excited about reupping or paying it forward, and that makes sense.
Anyway, here's what the White Sox are dealing with:
It's nice that they'll get a West Coast road trip out of the way early. It's not so nice that they'll play the NL Central two seasons in a row as their interleague partners. This year was supposed to be the NL West before COVID-19 intervened, although Josh is trying to make Leinenkugel Summer Shandy out of lemons by planning a tailgate in Milwaukee 55 weeks in advance.
(Photo of Boomers Stadium courtesy of the Chicago White Sox)
