Levine: Chris Sale Gets Into Flow Of Competition On The Mound Again

By Bruce Levine-

GLENDALE, Ariz. (CBS) -- White Sox ace Chris Sale made his first competitive appearance of the spring Monday morning, facing a group of Dodger players in a B game on the back fields of the team's complex. Sale threw 75 pitches without much effort, allowing two runs in 4 1/3 innings. He walked two, hit a batter and struck out four Dodger hitters.

Sale's set to make his spring Cactus League debut in a regularly scheduled game on March 19. He had thrown two simulated games against White Sox hitters prior to Monday's outing.

"The adrenaline will be different, no doubt," Sale said about his next appearance, coming Saturday against the Dodgers again. "You are throwing with the big net back there, music between innings, real game conditions facing someone else."

Although the 2015 season was historic for Sale -- he set a franchise single-season record with 274 strikeouts -- he's hoping that team accomplishments finally exceed the past past six years of his career. Chicago hasn't gone to the playoffs since 2008, and its combined record since Sale made his MLB debut in 2010 is 464-508. Only two of those seasons have been over .500 for the White Sox.

Sale' individual records have been fun to watch for White Sox fans, but of a more important nature, not pitching in meaningful September games has been difficult Sale to handle. He pitched through the entire 2015 season without any real arm issues for the first time in his career.

That was a credit to Sale for his diligent workouts and weight training routine. The training staff led by Herm Schneider, Brian Ball and Allen Thomas has been instrumental in providing support and advice for the angular pitcher to thrive under.

Gaining weight properly and learning his trade from pitching coach Don Cooper have been a big part of the maturation process for Sale from thrower to pitcher. At Sox Fest this past winer, the two spent time talking about a new thought process in getting batters out. The use of the sinker early in the count to induce groundballs has been the concentration for Sale this spring.

"Just getting out there in general is fun," Sale said. "It is not fun getting beat around and losing. Today against real competition was going to be fun, no matter what."

Sale was getting ahead of hitters and using the sinker and slider early in the count Monday.

"Any time you can keep it out of the air, you're in a good spot," Sale said. "Weak contact and putting the ball on the ground will do a lot of good things for pitchers."

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.