4 observations from Chicago White Sox camp, including the lack of televised Cactus League games and the bullpen drama

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Rick Hahn has not hidden from Chicago White Sox fans this winter, contrary to popular opinion.

Though the general manager has taken the brunt of criticism for the lack of offseason moves, he said at the start of spring training that most of the reaction he received has been positive.

“People have called,” he said. “People stop me in public. The TSA guy likes to talk a lot. I’m out and about. For the most part, I will say, look, it’s putting aside anything related to Mike (Clevinger), a lot of what I’ve heard from friends has been pretty positive in terms of their excitement for (manager) Pedro (Grifol).

“Most every other conversation mentions health in some level, some capacity, which I get. But for the most part, I’m hearing from a lot of people who are excited about the prospect for the future this club holds.”

The Clevinger saga will remain a focus as he pitches in Cactus League games while MLB continues to investigate domestic violence allegations. But the Sox have plenty of other issues to consider as they prepare to recover from the 2022 debacle.

Here are four observations from the opening week of Sox camp.

The Cubs will air their opener against the San Francisco Giants at the same time on Marquee Sports Network. But fans who enjoy watching both teams won’t have to choose between them much this spring.

NBC Sports Chicago — in which the Sox own a stake — will televise only six Sox spring training games, including a March 17 game against the Cubs. Marquee will televise 29 Cubs games, and MLB Network will televise two others.

The disparity is jarring, but according to sources at NBC Sports Chicago, there just isn’t a big enough demand for Sox spring training games. So the station prefers to give Sox fans a taste of the action to whet their appetites instead of a daily serving.

Marquee, which is co-owned by the Cubs, is more heavily invested in promoting the team. The Cubs believe televising most Cactus League games can create interest heading into the season.

I’m not sure which approach is best, but obviously die-hard Sox fans want more games. And with the Bulls struggling and the Blackhawks rebuilding, interest in spring training figures to increase this year.

With Liam Hendriks battling non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Kendall Graveman would seem the obvious candidate at this point.

Joe Kelly and Reynaldo López also could get save opportunities early in the season, or the Sox could go with matchups until someone wins the job.

“The good thing is we have a number of guys who have pitched late leverage,” Grifol said. “The good thing is the makeup of this bullpen, we have experience. We feel we can pitch the seventh, eighth and ninth innings.”

Hopefully Grifol gives López a fair shot. He was seventh among all relievers with a 1.9 WAR in 2022. Hendriks ranked 19th (1.6), while Graveman was well down the list at 76th (0.7).

“You can’t replace (Hendriks),” pitching coach Ethan Katz said. “But we’re going to be creative, match up as best we can, and we have a lot of good options down there. So we’ll figure it out.”

They’d better. Nothing can sink a team’s chances of contending more than blown saves early in the season.

“We’re only out here for so long in the morning and afternoon,” starter Lucas Giolito said. “It’s like having that attention to detail every day, being very much in the present. Not looking forward and being like, ‘Oh, our goal is to win the World Series.’ Well, if we want to get there, currently we’re in February, so let’s do the work now and keep stacking, stacking, stacking.

“I love that message. I love how he’s been around and available to talk to whoever and building relationships. It’s been great.”

The change of vibes from Tony La Russa to Grifol has been obvious. The manager is no longer “the show” on the South Side, which can only help.

Making him the regular second baseman over Romy Gonzalez should take some pressure off the young prospect, and Andrus improves the Sox defense while adding a decent bat at a low cost.

It would be better if they let Andrus play shortstop, his preferred position. But the Sox never would disrespect Tim Anderson by moving him from short, where he was the American League starter in the 2022 All-Star Game. Anderson deserves that respect … for now.

Still, of the 31 players with 600 or more innings at shortstop in 2022, Anderson ranked 29th in defensive runs saved. If he gets off to another slow defensive start, the Sox would be better served with Andrus there on occasion and Anderson at DH.

Would Grifol do something that bold in his first year? Hopefully Anderson makes the necessary defensive improvements to avoid the question.