The White Sox are about to get spring training started out in Arizona, which means the baseball season is right around the corner.
Between breakout seasons from many of the team's young core players in 2019 and a busy, acquisition-filled offseason this winter, there are realistic postseason expectations on the South Side as the White Sox look to reach the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade.
NBC Sports Chicago is the only home for White Sox baseball all season long, with 161 games scheduled to air on the network and stream on the MyTeams app.
In anticipation of the upcoming campaign, here are nine must-watch series — one (or two) for each month of the baseball calendar — on the 2020 regular-season schedule.
vs. Royals (March 26 through March 29)
Your first chance to watch the 2020 White Sox comes on Opening Day, March 26 at Guaranteed Rate Field against the division-rival Royals. Rick Hahn's remarkable amount of offseason work will take the field for the first time. Yasmani Grandal, Edwin Encarnacion, Nomar Mazara and Luis Robert all figure to be in Rick Renteria's Opening Day lineup, and Dallas Keuchel figures to pitch during the first series of the year, even if it's Lucas Giolito getting the ball in the season-opener. Also, who wouldn't want to watch athletes attempting to do their job outdoors in late March in Chicago?
vs. Twins (April 10 through April 12)
MLB
While the Indians have claim to contender status in the AL Central, too, the Twins are the team the White Sox will need to beat to win their first division crown in more than a decade. Nelson Cruz and The Bomba Squad hit 307 home runs last season, the most in a single campaign in baseball history, and added Josh Donaldson to an already thunderous lineup. The White Sox have realistic postseason expectations, but they'll need to dethrone the team that won 101 games last season to get to October.
at Padres (May 11 through May 13)
The White Sox face off against NL West opponents this season, and while rare trips to San Francisco and Denver ought to be nice for the squad, the team of most interest to the fan base is the Padres, the team that signed Manny Machado last spring. The White Sox wanted Machado, though plenty think they might have dodged a bullet, both because Machado disappointed in his first season in San Diego and because the White Sox were able to spend the money they didn't give to Machado on their various upgrades this winter. They'll go head to head against Machado — and former prospect Fernando Tatis Jr, dealt away in the James Shields trade — in Southern California this season.
at Indians (June 19 through June 21)
There are 19 games between the White Sox and Indians this season, and while none is more important than the rest (at least until the season gets down to the wire), any meeting will be big. The Indians might trail the Twins and the White Sox when it comes to offensive capabilities — though that Francisco Lindor guy is pretty good. But even after trading Corey Kluber, they might have the best rotation in the game. The White Sox lineup will have to figure out a way to solve Mike Clevinger and Shane Bieber and Carlos Carrasco and Zach Plesac if they want to win the Central title.
vs. Cubs (July 7 and 8), at Cubs (July 20 and 21)
Hawk Harrelson said on numerous times leading up to his retirement that Chicago fans were in for a golden age on both sides of town. Well, after Eloy Jimenez blasted a game-winning homer in his first game against the team that traded him last year, there's reason to call this a rivalry again. The White Sox are attempting to move into contention mode, while the Cubs are attempting to keep their contention window from slamming shut just a little while longer. Are these two teams heading in opposite directions? Certainly White Sox fans will be looking for bragging rights in these two two-game sets this summer.
vs. Astros (Aug. 28 through Aug. 30)
The Astros are the talk of the league these days, and it will be very interesting to see how the firings of their general manager and manager and the fallout of their sign-stealing scandal will effect them on the field in 2020. They still boast one of baseball's best rosters, and this could be a measuring-stick series for a White Sox team looking to compete with the game's big boys. Or the Astros might not be able to keep their streak of success going with their culture being rebooted on the fly. Cheating or no cheating, the Astros couldn't solve Giolito last season in the first of his two shutouts against 100-win clubs. Also, this series (or the first, in June in Houston) will pit Keuchel against his former mates.
at Twins (Sept. 4 through Sept. 6), vs. Indians (Sept. 21 through Sept. 23)
For the first time in a long time, September expects to feature meaningful baseball on the South Side. The White Sox will see four 2019 playoff teams in the season's final month (at the Rays, Twins and A's, home against the Dodgers). But the most meaningful figures to come against the other AL Central contenders. The White Sox will travel to the Twin Cities for their final set against the Twins at the beginning of the month and play hosts to the Indians at the end of the month. There are also six games against the rebuilding Royals in there and a season-ending set with the bottom-of-the-division Tigers, which could provide a much needed respite from an onslaught of contenders. It all depends on how the season shakes out, but these two series against the Twins and Indians could determine whether or not the White Sox reach the playoffs.
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