This story was excerpted from Scott Merkin’s White Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO -- Preseason prognostications have not shown the 2024 White Sox in an overly optimistic light.

Not the computer models forecasting low win totals and an equally low finish in the American League Central. Not the media pundits, and certainly not the White Sox fans, who enter the upcoming campaign a few miles south of a positive outlook. It’s certainly understandable based on recent history. 

White Sox players have heard these dire baseball thoughts during the latter stages of the offseason as they get ready for the 162-game grind. They’ve heard, but they don’t necessarily agree.

“Everybody is counting us out,” said White Sox right fielder Gavin Sheets, who was part of a group of players in Chicago last weekend for a Boys & Girls Club of Chicago event Thursday and a season ticket holder event at the Field Museum Friday. “The only thing you can do is use that to fuel us. We go out every day trying to play hard and win games, and that doesn’t change what we are going to do. 

“We all know we aren’t favored to do anything this year. That’s the first time since I’ve been here in the big leagues in three years. We can use that to help us and motivate us and see what we can do with it.”

On paper, the White Sox look closer to their 101-loss disappointment of 2023 than the top of the American League Central. Then again, no player, be it rookie or 10-year veteran, enters Spring Training with a “We’re in trouble” attitude or “Our chances are slim” mindset. They don’t put in the countless offseason hours or the daily pregame and postgame work to give up before the first pitch has been thrown.

That undermanned negative seen by so many outside the club, or the idea that the White Sox aren’t nearly as talented from top to bottom as numerous other clubs, could become a clubhouse point of emphasis for a number of players looking to bounce back from underperformance or injury.

“Paul [DeJong] knows what he can be. I know Nicky [Lopez] knows what he can be. Myself included,” said White Sox starting pitcher Michael Soroka, who played for a consistently good Braves team but one still playing with a chip on its shoulder. “We have a lot of guys, I think, that have something to prove. We know what’s available in ourselves, and we want to pull that out on this team.

“You could end up with a team that is very, very hard to play against because you are playing against a lot of guys playing for their careers. That’s sometimes how some of those teams start. I’m excited to do that. I hope that is this club.”

Changes started last Trade Deadline under then-general manager Rick Hahn and executive vice president Ken Williams. New general manager Chris Getz has since put a focus on improved defense, playing faster and building a winning culture at the center of what he hopes will be successful years to come.

Getz has pointed out a few times how last year’s team lost 101 games, so they couldn’t bring back the same basic crew and hope to improve. Last year has also been pushed aside during this retooling or rebuilding period.

“It’s more so we know what we can do,” White Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi said. “The potential in there is extremely high, and honestly, we are in a division that is pretty winnable for any team. It all comes down to staying healthy and playing to our potential. It’s one thing to say and another thing to do.” 

Manager Pedro Grifol describes a second Spring Training at the helm as one of the most excited feelings he’s been a part of with great energy from the front office, players and coaches. They are motivated and excited to prove they are capable of doing some good things. 

“I just feel it,” Grifol said. “There is a good vibe. You’ll see it, you’ll feel it, and you’ll hear it from these guys when you talk to them.

“They feel the same way. We’re all in this together. We have a really good staff we’ve assembled with a lot of experience and postseason experience as well. The group of players that we have are not going to let that slip away from us.”