Super Joe Speaks: I'm smiling under my mask
In what passes for the bumper sticker commemorating this weird Summer Camp world, one we'll be living in for another week, bench coach Joe McEwing began his media time on Saturday with a familiar bit of upbeatery: "Another Sox win, a great day. We’re undefeated!"
But Super Joe couldn't dodge the tastiest item of the day for long, as the Luis Robert Experience overtook his session.
"Under this mask, I'm smiling from ear-to-ear becuse we have the opportunity to see this for a long time," the mentor says of his center fielder. "He’s a special talent. He’s an individual you will pay to go watch play. You can expect the unexpected. He has a chance to do something special every day."
As for the actual act of a falling-down home run?
"I was underneath [looking at a replay] and saw the tail end of it, and I saw him sitting on the ground and I was like 'RUN RUN RUN!'" McEwing smiled. "Then I realized it was 15 rows deep."
McEwing was also very impressed with the in-game adjustments made by two promising talents coming up on a crucial season: Reynaldo López and Nomar Mazara.
On López: "The adjustments he made from batter-to-batter, in the past it may have sped up and snowballed, but he shut it down and was able to get back and focus."
On Mazara: "Our hitting coaches have done an amazing job with his approach, made some mechanical changes in what he’s been able to do. It’s going to be sustainable all season, against righties and lefties."
For the full, ebullient McEwing session, please watch below, courtesy of the White Sox: