Pregame notes: Aaron Civale’s White Sox debut

ARLINGTON, Tex. -- No one would claim to have seen Aaron Civale's trade request coming, but the member of the White Sox coaching staff most familiar with the right-hander did note his unique level of conviction in his routine and process, which is hopefully going to aid his midseason transition to a new team.

"Aaron knows what he wants to do, so [he and the White Sox catchers] getting on the same page won't be terribly difficult," said bench coach Walker McKinven, who worked with Civale after he was traded to the Brewers midseason last year. "Aaron's a really well-spoken, thoughtful person and has a ton of track record and experience and a foundation of success. He's a really good communicator."

McKinven recalled the Brewers having about 12 hours to prep Civale for a start against the Dodgers after acquiring him last year. And after rapidly onboarding Tyler Alexander to pitch in a game he arrived in the middle of, the ramp-up periods for Adrian Houser and now Civale have felt downright luxurious.

"We communicated right after we got him, trying to get some information on what he's like from the advanced stuff," said pitching coach Ethan Katz. "Also sent him some stuff that we have and talked yesterday and he just went over the game plan today and so far, so good. Having [McKinven] on board definitely helps because he was able to give me the inside [information], I also got a call from Cleveland, from the guys that know him over there. Had a pretty good idea coming into this."

Katz noted that this first outing might not include some adjustments the Sox have in mind for Civale, as they're focused on accommodating him and getting to know his process more so than overloading their new starter at this point. And Civale's process contains a lot.

"He's a guy with a really deep mix," McKinven said. "He throws seven, sometimes eight pitches. It's him talking about how he wants to use everything and what his foundation is, how he goes about his way, he does a good job of providing the catcher and the staff with what he does well and what he wants to do. Here I expect the same thing: he's going to give us what he's got and how he wants to pitch and we're going to give feedback as well."

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Luis Robert Jr. was scratched from the lineup a couple hours before first pitch with what the White Sox say is right thumb soreness. This beat writer did not see anyone hugging Robert, largely because Robert was not seen at all, likely because he was in the trainer's room.

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While Chris Getz floated the notion of a six-man rotation when Jonathan Cannon returns--which again, is likely at least two weeks away, if not slightly more--and Will Venable didn't dismiss it. But you'll pry the eight-man bullpen out of Katz's cold, dead hands.

"I don’t know if six-man rotation can be in the cards with the state of the bullpen, because you lose a bullpen arm and that’s not really helpful," Katz said.

The Sox are kicking Shane Smith back a couple days for the second-straight turn through the rotation. Katz said they're still talking through how they will manage the innings of a suite of starters who are coming off partial-season workloads last year (Smith, Sean Burke, Davis Martin), but since Mike Vasil threw 134 innings in Triple-A last season, stretching him out gradually is a possibility.

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The White Sox can't exactly rule Grant Taylor out for Sunday after how many arms they used in Saturday's 11-inning war, but Katz said he's probably the last available option.

First pitch: White Sox at Rangers

TV: CHSN

Radio: ESPN 1000 AM

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