CHICAGO -- Yoán Moncada is ready for baseball.
And the switch-hitting White Sox third baseman seems fully prepared for the unique 60-game season caused by reaction to the coronavirus pandemic after working out in Florida, where reported cases have recently spiked.
“I was working in a very controlled and limited environment,” said Moncada during a Wednesday Zoom call, through interpreter Billy Russo. "We were doing workouts by time. You have to reserve a time to work out there and do your stuff. I wasn’t interacting with a lot of people there.
“I've kept my energy inside me this whole time. A few times I was at home I was like, ‘OK, I need to get out of here. I need to play,’ because it's just that excitement and energy that I have. I think the season's going to be good. I'm going to be able to display all the things that I usually do on the field.”
Friday’s first Summer Camp workout at Guaranteed Rate Field will be different, setting the tone for a 2020 season filled with differences for everyone involved. As Moncada pointed out, the 44-man White Sox player pool will work out in two groups, making for an interesting feel as a team.
A good White Sox vibe started developing during Spring Training in Arizona back in February and March before baseball was shut down due to the pandemic. But amidst the separate workout groups, the spaced-out clubhouse lockers across the ballpark and the absence of fans in the stands, Moncada stressed staying healthy was the No. 1 team goal.
“We have to understand that,” Moncada said. “It's going to be difficult to try to manage that interaction, the way that we talk, because we're usually very close. But we have to understand that in order for us to stay healthy, and to do the things that we want to do this season, we have to follow the rules and all the protocols. We're going to do our best to try to do that.
“It's going to feel weird because you won't have the energy that the fans give you every day. It's going to be a challenge for us to try to do our best to try to replace the atmosphere that the fans bring to the ballpark, but it is on all of us to try to figure out a way to do it. I see ourselves in a very good position to compete in this division. I think that the team to beat is the Minnesota Twins, but we have a very good team to compete against them.”
Moncada resides at the center of that talented White Sox team, making a move from rebuild to the upper tier of the American League Central. He had a breakout 2019 campaign, slashing .315/.367/.548 with 34 doubles, 25 home runs, 79 RBIs and 83 runs scored. He was even asked Thursday if he considered himself in the American League MVP mix entering this campaign.
Though Moncada's arrival in Chicago was without family, he never thought about electing not to play this season. The 25-year-old is ready to get going.
“[Not playing in 2020] was something that never crossed my mind,” Moncada said, adding that he had respect for any player who made that decision. “I was ready to play as soon as they told us that it was all figured out. I just was ready. I didn't feel any [need to] hold back or anything. For me, this is what I do, and I just was ready.”
Senior Reporter Scott Merkin has covered the White Sox for MLB.com since 2003.