GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Shane Smith, the current favorite for the White Sox Opening Day starter, felt good enough to face hitters again on Friday afternoon. The right-hander took part in his first live batting practice of Spring Training on the backfields at Camelback Ranch.
One of those hitters was Munetaka Murakami, the new White Sox first baseman from Japan on a two-year, $34 million deal whose every move is being chronicled in Arizona. Smith clearly doesn’t have a book on Murakami, who is scheduled to meet the media Saturday, so he tried “to throw stuff against the wall and see what sticks,” according to the All-Star.
“The name of the game is getting ahead. 2-0 to him doesn’t really work,” Smith said. “I’m excited for him to get his feet wet in Spring Training and ball out in the WBC. I hope everything transfers over from Japan. He’s a great dude. I’m really excited to have him in the clubhouse.
“Obviously he’s a busy man. When I can, I say, 'Hello, how’s it going?' I’m sure as time comes, we’ll get to know each other a little bit more.”
Murakami talked with Smith briefly after the live BP session and had a little longer discussion with infield mate Chase Meidroth in one of the dugouts. He was credited with a single by manager Will Venable on a broken-bat connection during his live BP interaction against left-hander Sean Newcomb.
“It was good,” said Venable of Murakami. “He looks comfortable.”
“This guy came in with a really good idea of what he needs to do,” hitting coach Derek Shomon told MLB.com regarding Murakami. “He’s a great kid, who works exceptionally hard. At times, we are going to have to pull him back and take a breath.”
Nossek passes away
Joe Nossek, a respected coach for the White Sox from 1984-86 and again from 1990-2003, passed away at the age of 85 Thursday night in Amherst, Ohio, according to the White Sox. Nossek was known as one of the best in the game at picking up signs from opposing teams.
“I remember he came over to us in 1984,” said White Sox special advisor Tony La Russa, who had Nossek on staff during his first managerial stint in Chicago. “He gave me two or three really good keys [for picking up signs]. A couple of years later, I was gone to Oakland and I would talk to our coaches, and we used Joe’s keys.
“He just was very fundamentally sound, could teach anything. And he had the ability to pick up strategies from the other side. He would defend the running game for a lot of managers.”
La Russa, a Hall of Famer, paid Nossek one of the highest compliments in regard to his baseball acumen.
“With no hesitation, in our generation, he would be tied for first for the best baseball mind,” La Russa said. “He knew infield play, outfield play. He was a hell of a third-base coach, but he could pick those signs.”
Camelback's new White Sox look
Large, new glossy pictures of the current White Sox crew now adorn the walls at the team’s facility in Glendale, Ariz., along with the iconic images from the franchise’s past great moments.
“In every building, it’s important to highlight the guys who are here,” Venable said. “At the same time, there’s a rich history here with the White Sox and there’s still a bunch of pictures up of those guys.
“Those guys are all special, important pieces of this organization. It’s nice to have a mix and cool to see some of the new pictures.”