CHICAGO -- The biggest victory and greatest moment for the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday came about seven hours before the first pitch was even thrown at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Danny Farquhar, the 31-year-old White Sox reliever, made his first visit to the White Sox clubhouse less than one month after suffering a brain hemorrhage caused by a ruptured aneurysm and undergoing the ensuing surgery. The tragedy befell the right-hander after he pitched against the Astros at home on April 20.
Words such as "awesome," "exciting" and "a blessing" were used to describe Farquhar's amazing appearance. But right-hander Nate Jones, who visited Farquhar in the hospital Saturday, summed up the uplifting afternoon with the perfect heartfelt feeling.
"To see him where he is today is pretty much a miracle," Jones said with a broad smile.
Jones was wearing his "Pray for 43" T-shirt Tuesday, a shirt dedicated to Farquhar's recovery and worn by many White Sox players. That shirt became a topic of conversation with Farquhar, who was joined by his wife, Lexie, along with many other subjects, including baseball itself.

Although Farquhar was discharged from RUSH University Medical Center on Monday, he has been ruled out from playing the rest of the season.
"He's a fighter who wants to be back with us and wants to be back with the team," Jones said. "But we told him, 'Hey man, look how fresh your arm is going to be next year.' He was down a little bit, but he's excited he gets to return next year."
"You can't place a limit on the size of a man's heart, and he has a lot of drive," White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. "We're just glad that he's out of the hospital now and recovering well. He still has to take it easy for a couple more weeks, just monitor himself, but I wouldn't put anything past Danny in terms of what he may or may not be able to do."
When Jones visited Farquhar Saturday, he promised his friend the No. 43 jersey flying in the White Sox bullpen would stay there until Farquhar returned to the ballpark. Jones said there would be a talk among the team concerning keeping the jersey flying even after one of Farquhar's missions was accomplished.
"All the reports [say] he's doing well, but to see him in good spirits, smiling and laughing and having a good time, was great," White Sox starter James Shields said. "He's definitely the same guy, no doubt. To see him and to hear how positive he was, the guy wants to come back and play baseball already."
"Not many people can make it through that surgery," White Sox starter Miguel Gonzalez said. "And just to have him around here, he was loving life just to be around the guys."
"He was a little worried about the stress of being the center of attention. Nobody necessarily likes that at any point of your life," Jones said. "He was excited, and I think he was excited about how excited we were. It was just a blessing to see him walk in here. It lifted everybody's spirits."