Davidson inflicts damage in return with White Sox

After a wet, wretched start to the week, there was no shortage of needed good news Thursday at Guaranteed Rate Field.

The top headline was the Chicago White Sox rolling over the Detroit Tigers, 11-2.

Over here was Rick Renteria bagging his first win as Sox manager.

Over there was catcher Geovany Soto flashing his 2008 National League Rookie of the Year form with 2 home runs.

And, don't look now, but James Shields pitched pretty well for the first time out after tying for the major-league lead with 19 losses last season.

"I'm very excited," said Renteria, who lost his first game as Sox manager on Tuesday, a day after the scheduled season opener was rained out. "I'm very happy that it's in the books. But for me, the biggest thing had to do more with me watching them play and seeing the things they were doing."

Outside of a dropped flyball by Avisail Garcia in right field and Shields issuing 5 walks in 5.1 innings, the White Sox did very little wrong in their lopsided win over the Tigers.

The best story of the afternoon was Matt Davidson, who tripled in his first at-bat, walked and then hit a 3-run homer to break the game open.

"I can completely understand and do appreciate the situation he's in," Renteria said.

Acquired in a trade from Arizona before the 2014 season for closer Addison Reed and immediately deemed the Sox's starting third baseman of the future, Davidson buried himself in Class AAA Charlotte the next two seasons.

Leading the International League in strikeouts in 2014 and '15, the affable Californian went into a shell and braced for his release papers.

The White Sox were forced to trade for Todd Frazier before last season, and Davidson was given one last shot at Triple-A.

The 6-foot-3, 230-pounder made the most of it, cutting his swing down and performing well enough over the first three months of the season to get a call to join the big club.

In his first game with the Sox, on June 30, Davidson singled in his second trip to the plate. But he broke his right foot running the bases and had season-ending surgery the following day.

Back in the lineup for the first time on Thursday against Detroit, Davidson quickly showed he can handle the difficult role of designated hitter.

"That was definitely a good feeling," he said. "I try not to think about it. I just try not to dwell on it. I didn't even realize it until probably, maybe my third at-bat, after I (homered). I came back and when I started down the tunnel I thought, 'Man, I remember I broke my foot when I was running down this tunnel.'"

Soto's first homer of the game, a 3-run shot with one out in the third inning, chased Detroit starter Matthew Boyd. Soto added a solo home run in the seventh.

"When a couple guys start rolling it can be contagious, and I think that's what happened today," Soto said.

Shields got the win, allowing 1 run before exiting with one out in the sixth inning.

"It's always good to have a clean slate," he said. "We have a long way to go. I got off on the right foot today, a little more walks than I wanted, but overall we have a lot of work to do over a long season and we're going to continue to grind."

Scouting report

White Sox vs. Minnesota Twins at Guaranteed Rate Field

TV: WGN Friday; Comcast SportsNet Saturday and Sunday

Radio: WLS 890-AM

Pitching matchups: The White Sox's Derek Holland (0-0) vs. Phil Hughes (0-0) Friday at 7:10 p.m.; Miguel Gonzalez (0-0) vs. Adalberto Mejia (0-0) Saturday at 1:10 p.m.; Jose Quintana (0-1) vs. Ervin Santana (1-0) Sunday at 1:10 p.m.

At a glance: The Sox close out their opening homestand against the Twins after splitting a rain-shortened two-game series vs. the Tigers. The major-league leaders with 103 losses last year, Minnesota opened this season with a three-game home sweep over Kansas City. Holland makes his White Sox debut in the series opener. The 30-year-old lefty was 7-9 with a 4.95 ERA for Texas last season while missing two months with inflammation in his throwing shoulder. The Sox were 12-7 vs. the Twins last season (6-3 at home).

Next: Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field, Tuesday-Thursday

- Scot Gregor