Game Day Preview: White Sox Host Angels On Opening Day

It's Opening Day of the 2025 MLB season, and the Chicago White Sox will be in action against the Los Angeles Angeles Angels at Rate Field in Chicago. Here are the TV and radio details, probable pitchers, lineups, betting information and more.

Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (88) and first baseman Andrew Vaughn (25) celebrate against the Los Angeles Angels at Rate Field. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

CHICAGO – Baseball season is officially back as the Chicago White Sox host the Los Angeles Angels Thursday at Rate Field.

The White Sox enter their first season under manager Will Venable, who was an associate manager the Texas Rangers. He replaced interim manager Grady Sizemore, who was promoted midseason for fired manager Pedro Grifol as Chicago went 41-121 in 2024, the most losses in the modern era.

The Angeles also finished last place in their division last season, and they enter the 2025 season under second-year manager Ron Washington. MVP center fielder Mike Trout is back from injury, and free agent signing Yusei Kikuchi is in line to start Opening Day.

Here's more information on Thursday's game.

How to watch White Sox vs. Angels

• Who: Chicago White Sox (0-0) vs. Los Angeles Angels (0-0)
• When: Thursday, March 27 at 3:10 p.m. CT
• Where: Rate Field in Chicago, Ill.
• TV: Chicago Sports Network (CHSN)
• Announcers: John Schriffen (play-by-play), Steve Stone (analyst), Brooke Fletcher (reporter).
• Radio: ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM
• Announcers: Len Kasper (play-by-play), Darrin Jackson (analyst), Jeff Meller (pre and postgame show)
• Betting information: The Angels are favored by 1.5 runs, and the over/under is 7.5 runs. The White Sox moneyline odds are plus-134, according to the FanDuel Sportsbook on Wednesday night.
• Weather: At 3 p.m. CT Thursday in Chicago, the forecast is 52 degrees and cloudy with a 15% chance of rain and south winds at 11 miles per hour.

Thursday's starting pitchers

(2024 stats)

• White Sox RHP Sean Burke: 19 IP, 1.42 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 7 BB, 22 K
• Angels LHP Yusei Kikuchi: 175.2 IP, 4.05 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 44 BB, 206 K

Official lineups

White Sox

• Miguel Vargas, 3B
• Luis Robert, CF
• Andrew Benintendi, DH
• Andrew Vaughn, 1B
• Austin Slater, RF
• Lenyn Sosa, 2B
• Korey Lee, C
• Jake Amaya, SS
• Michael A. Taylor, LF

Angels

• Taylor Ward, LF
• Nolan Schanuel, 1B
• Mike Trout, RF
• Jorge Soler, DH
• Tim Anderson, 2B
• Luis Rengifo, 3B
• Logan O'Hoppe, C
• Jo Adell, CF
• Kevin Newman, SS

News

• The White Sox made eight roster moves on Wednesday:
• INF/OF Greg Jones has been claimed off waivers from the Colorado Rockies and optioned to Class AAA Charlotte.
• RHP Justin Anderson has been optioned to Charlotte.
• Five players have been reassigned to minor league camp, including infielders Bobby Dalbec, Tristan Gray and Chase Meidroth and pitchers James Karinchak and Steven Wilson.
• Outfielder Oscar Colas has been designated for assignment.
• Three players are headed to the injured list: infielder Josh Rojas, outfielder Mike Tauchman and pitcher Tyler Gilbert, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com.
• The White Sox finalized their Opening Day roster on Wednesday. CLICK HERE to view the full roster.

Managers

• Will Venable, Chicago White Sox: Venable, 42, is in his first season with the White Sox and first year as an MLB manager. He was previously an associate manager for the Texas Rangers from 2023-24 and on the coaching staffs for the Boston Red Sox from 2021-22 and Chicago Cubs from 2018-20. An outfielder during his playing days, Venable began his career with the San Diego Padres from 2008-15 and later played for the Texas Rangers in 2015 and Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016. He had a .249 batting average in 967 career games. Venable graduated from Princeton University, where he played baseball and basketball.
• Ron Washington, Los Angeles Angels: Washington, 72, enters his second season with the Angels after going 63-99 in 2024 and finishing fifth in the AL West. That ended a 10-year managerial gap as Washington was the Atlanta Braves third base coach from 2016-23 and held various assistant coaching roles with the Oakland Athletics from 2015-16. Washington was previously the Texas Rangers' manager from 2007-14, a stretch that included two division titles, three playoff appearances and back-to-back losses in the World Series in 2010 and 2011. He had a 664-611 record with the Rangers.

Related stories on the Chicago White Sox

• OPENING DAY ROSTER: The Chicago White Sox Opening Day roster is complete ahead of Thursday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. CLICK HERE
• MEET THE OPPONENT: The Chicago White Sox begin the 2025 season by hosting the Los Angeles Angels for Opening Day at Rate Field. Here's a look at the Angels' offseason moves, projected lineup, starting pitchers and more. CLICK HERE
• EIGHT ROSTER MOVES: Ahead of Opening Day on Thursday, the White Sox made several changes to the roster, including designating Oscar Colas for assignment. CLICK HERE
• 3 POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS: The White Sox will hope to build on a few strong performances from spring training as the 2025 season approaches. CLICK HERE
• ROADCAST TEAM: Play-by-play announcer John Schriffen and analyst Steve Stone will lead the Chicago White Sox television for a second straight season. Here's the full team. CLICK HERE
• WHITE SOX WIN TOTAL OVER/UNDER: The FanDuel Sportsbook gave the Chicago White Sox the lowest over/under win total projection heading into the 2025 MLB season. CLICK HERE