THIS DATE IN SOX HISTORY: MARCH 1ST

[StatManDu]

THIS DATE IN WHITE SOX HISTORY: MARCH 1ST

 

SCOTT SANDERSON SIGNED

1994: Seeking a fifth starter, the White Sox signed veteran pitcher Scott Sanderson to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training, which was well under way, as a non-roster player. The 37-year-old right-hander earned a spot in the Sox rotation and got off to a searing start. Sanderson was 2-0 with a 3.57 ERA in April , 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA in May and 3-2 with a 3.55 ERA in June. Sanderson’s best outing with the Sox came in June. On June 19, the Glenbrook High School graduate held the Angels hitless into the seventh and took a shutout into the ninth before settling for a three-hit victory in a 3-1 triumph at Comiskey Park. Things went south for Sanderson in July when he went 1-2 with a 10.24 ERA. In his final stint with the Sox, Sanderson gave up two runs – both on homers – in one-third of an inning Aug. 6 at California. The outing turned out to be his last with the Sox because of the work stoppage. All told, Sanderson went 8-4 with a 5.09 ERA in 18 games (14 starts) for the 1994 Sox. The Vanderbilt product went the free agent route after the season and signed with the Angels.

 

FLORIDA REPORT

1997: The White Sox dropped their final Grapefruit League home opener with a 12-8 setback to the Texas Rangers in Sarasota. 3,249 fans at Ed Smith Stadium watched the Sox fall to 1-1 on the spring. This was the Sox final spring in Florida after 44 years. The team would set up spring shop in Tucson, Ariz., and the Cactus League in the next spring.

 

STILL WINLESS IN THE DESERT

1998: Despite a two-run single from Robert Machado and two hits from Jeff Abbott, the White Sox remained winless in the Cactus League. The Sox, in their first year in Arizona, fell to 0-4 with a 7-6 loss to the host Diamondbacks at Tucson Electric Park.

 

THEY’RE BAAAACK

2006: In their first game since winning the World Series, the White Sox lost to the Colorado Rockies 6-1 in their Cactus League opener before 3,468 at Tucson Electric Park. The defending World Series champions would not win in the Cactus League until their seventh try.