PHOENIX — In Sunday’s Cactus League opener, 25-year-old right-hander Kade McClure had the sort of outing that, in a normal season, would earn him buzz as a candidate for a final spot in the bullpen. McClure technically has not pitched above Class A-Advanced, but he was drafted in 2017 and impressed in last fall’s instructional league behind some mechanical tweaks that had worked his four-seamer (already coming out of a 6-foot-7 frame) in the mid-90s.
“I’m coming in with the intent that I’m here for a reason,” McClure said. “I’m not here just to show face. I’m here to pitch and to pitch to the best of my abilities and show them, whether it’s off the bat or at some point this year, that you can call on me, you can trust me, you can use me.”
But this is not a season that looks like any of the White Sox campaigns since McClure was drafted.
