'Feeling really good,' Madrigal looking to make impact in second season with Sox

Jose Abreu has not yet joined the White Sox in spring training.

Last season's American League MVP informed the Sox he contracted a "mild case" of COVID-19 in January. Abreu says he "feels great" and could be in uniform at Camelback Ranch as soon as Friday.

Left-handed relief pitcher Jace Fry is recovering from back surgery and not expected to be ready to go until May.

That's about it on the White Sox's health front a week into camp, and the overall news is much better than most years.

Nick Madrigal missed most of August with a separated left shoulder, but had surgery in early October.

He was initially slated to need 5-6 months of recovery, and the White Sox's 23-year-old second baseman looks to be on the favorable side of that timeline.

"I'm feeling really good at this point," Madrigal said Thursday after the Sox's workout at Camelback Ranch. "I feel as each week has gone by, I'm getting stronger and stronger. The soreness is starting to go away."

When the Sox begin Cactus League play Sunday against the Brewers (2:05 p.m., NBC Sports Chicago), Madrigal's not expected to be in the lineup.

"I think it's coming up here in the near future," he said. "I don't know if it's going to be for the first game, but I'm thinking it's not too far out. Hopefully within the next couple weeks, I'll be back into games.

"I don't know if I'll play every inning of the game, but I'll at least work my way up for some at-bats and things like that."

There is plenty of time to get Madrigal ready to go for the April 1 season opener against the Angels in Anaheim, Calif., so the White Sox aren't going to push it.

"I'm starting to face live pitching and take a lot more swings on a daily basis," Madrigal said. "I've done some diving on the field, back into bags and also on the defensive side. We've got a sliding mat set up out there to try to kind of emulate some diving drills. It's feeling really good at this point."

In a very short rookie season last year, Madrigal showed why he was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2018 draft. He batted .340/.376/.369 in 29 games and struck out only seven times in 109 plate appearances.

The 5-foot-8, 175-pounder didn't hit any home runs and he made some rookie mistakes running the bases and playing defense. He also rushed back from the separated shoulder.

"Last year, the soreness was pretty bad, especially when I first came back," Madrigal said. "I was real hesitant to swing. I was kind of nervous of it popping out again. It's just a weird feeling once it happens, you kind of have it in the back of your mind and really don't want that feeling ever again.

"That was just something I had to deal with. Right now, it feels a lot better, completely different. There's soreness right now, but it's not like it's discomfort. I'm not worried about it popping out or anything like that. It's feeling really good at this point."

When he moves into the upcoming season healthy and more heady, Madrigal wants to give the lower end of the Sox's batting order a significant jolt.

"I'm excited," he said. "I feel like I can do a lot more stuff. I feel like last year, just getting a little taste, it was only 30-something games. I feel like I can do a lot more to help this team, whether that's on the basepaths or in the batter's box or on the defensive side.

"I feel like I didn't even showcase what kind of player I truly am. I'm excited to go out there, especially being a lot healthier this year and feeling almost completely 100 percent at this point. I'm excited to play my game. And I have no worries about any injuries or anything like that."

While he's been limited in training camp, Madrigal has made an early impression on new manager Tony La Russa.

"The more guys you have in your lineup who know how to play the game of baseball, they know how to play the score and they know how to manipulate the bat and direct the ball to different parts of the field and you can play whatever game you want to play with them, then you can dictate a chance to win all kind of games," La Russa said. "You don't have to win a game when the wind is blowing out. Nick, I mean, he's an artist."