White Sox right-hander Sean Burke just had to get settled.
Burke allowed a double in the first inning to left fielder Taylor Ward after he left a four-seam fastball in the heart of the zone. After forcing a groundout in the next at-bat, Burke lost control of his fastball and pelted Mike Trout, putting runners on first and third with one out.
But Burke rebounded by striking out second baseman Tim Anderson and designated hitter Jorge Soler to quell the Angels’ run. Burke said he had to tell himself not to overthrow the pitch because of how amped up he was from the crowd.
“That’s definitely the most fun I’ve ever had pitching in front of these fans at home,” Burke said. “That first inning after I struck out Tim Anderson was the craziest high of emotions with the fans cheering.”
Burke delivered in his first Opening Day start, throwing six scoreless innings, striking out three and allowing zero walks. Burke retired 14 consecutive batters from the second inning until he exited the game.
For the first time since the 2023 season opener, the White Sox are above .500 after winning 8-1 over the Angels on Opening Day.
“This is a new season and a clean slate and we’re excited to get off to a good start,” said manager Will Venable, who won his first game in charge. “These guys put in a lot of work in the offseason and obviously in spring training. And so for that to end in a win to start the season means a lot for us.”
It’s still too early to make any bold proclamations about this team, but the way they performed on Thursday was a marked improvement from last year. Five players are on the active roster from last year’s record-setting 41-121 team.
“It’s a new team,” catcher Korey Lee said. “A new manager. Fans were unbelievable today. It felt like a new year. That’s kind of the moral of the story here. Flip the page. It’s [the] 2025 Sox and now we are ready to rock.”
Each phase showed up and played its part.
Defensively, the Sox played a clean game, recording zero errors and making routine plays. The offense supplied eight runs and the bullpen — particularly Mike Clevinger — shut things down.
With the Sox clinging to a 3-0 lead, reliever Jordan Leasure entered in the top of the eighth inning. After forcing a groundout, allowing a walk, and inducing a flyout, Leasure allowed a single to Angels first baseman Noah Schanuel to put runners on first and third with two outs. Clevinger entered and after allowing a walk to star outfielder Mike Trout following a nine-pitch at-bat, the veteran pitcher struck out Soler to end the inning without any damage done.
“We talked about those situations and who we want out there for that,” Venable said. “And Mike’s the guy, right? He handles those situations well. The test came early for him. That was a big moment to see him get out of it, which was nice to see.”
Last year, it was rare to see all three phases work in cohesion for the Sox. But that’s the thing about last year, it’s last year.
“I think everyone has a chip on their shoulder from last year,” Burke said. “We know what kind of team we can be and I think just trying to go out every single day and just enjoy the game and play to the best of our abilities is what our motto is going to be going forward.”