The White Sox Podcast w/ Chuck Garfien

Chuck Garfien and Jason Benetti opened SoxFest 2018 with a seminar with GM Rick Hahn and manager Ricky Renteria. They talked about the excitement surrounding the White Sox, the cold Hot Stove this off-season, the signing of Welington Castillo, Jose Abreu’s defense, and much more.

Moments after getting the phone call from Cooperstown that he made the Baseball Hall of Fame, Jim Thome sat down for an interview with Chuck Garfien. Thome discusses the emotions of making the Hall of Fame, calling his dad to tell him the big news, why he owes part of his baseball success to Roy Hobbs from the movie “The Natural,” why being a great teammate was so important to him, his favorite White Sox moment, why he never took steroids and much more.

In Year Two of the rebuild, not much is expected from the White Sox in 2018. But is there more to this team than meets the eye? Could they compete this season and potentially follow the script of the Minnesota Twins who went from 103 losses to a wildcard spot in one year? Chuck Garfien, Ryan McGuffey and Chris Kamka dig into the possibilities and provide cases for why and why not.Plus, they announce the winner of the SoxFest passes and Kamka devotes this edition of Kamka's corner to soon to be Hall of Famer Jim Thome.

While taking part in the White Sox hitters camp in Glendale, Arizona, Nicky Delmonico joined Chuck Garfien and Ryan McGuffey on the podcast to talk about his impressions of Luis Robert and Eloy Jimenez. But that was only the beginning. Delmonico went in-depth about his first major league season, doing hot yoga this winter with Jake Burger, the one White Sox player he expects to have a big season in 2018 (the answer might surprise you), losing a big bet to Tim Anderson. Plus, Delmonico helps us give away a pair of 3-day passes to Sox Fest and much more.

With some of baseball's top pitching talent in the White Sox system, who better to talk about them than longtime White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper? Coop gives us the goods on Michael Kopech, Alec Hansen, Reynaldo Lopez, Dylan Cease, Joakim Soria and many others. He reveals the adjustment Lucas Giolito made last season that changed everything for the young right-hander, the one White Sox pitcher he thinks will make a big jump in 2018, and explains why he thinks the White Sox could surprise people in 2018.

With the Miami Marlins listening to offers for Christian Yelich, what should the White Sox be willing to give up for the All-Star outfielder? MLB.com’s Phil Rogers joins Chuck Garfien and Chris Kamka to discuss the possibilities. They also talk about the White Sox bullpen trade that netted Joakim Soria and Luis Avilan, who the White Sox will sign to help their starting rotation and much more.

With the Hall of Fame announcing its 2018 inductees on January 24, Chuck Garfien, Chris Kamka and Rob Wiatrowski revealed their Hall of Fame ballots in a lively debate about who should get into Cooperstown and who shouldn’t. Plus, will Jim Thome be a first ballot Hall of Famer? What about Omar Vizquel? They talk Bonds, Clemens, Schilling, Walker, McGriff, Mussina and many more.

We all know about the big name prospects in the White Sox organization like Kopech, Jimenez, Robert and Collins, but what about some of the lesser known players who could have big upsides in their future? MLB.com senior writer Jim Callis comes on the podcast to give Chuck Garfien and Ryan McGuffey five minor league players that White Sox fans should look out for in 2018. They also talk about the White Sox deep farm system, the upside of Alec Hansen, and more.

We wrap up the year with a greatest hits podcast, featuring the top 10 moments that happened on the podcast in 2017: Scott Podsednik brought to tears talking about his 2005 World Series home run, Eloy Jimenez saying he wants to be as good as Miguel Cabrera and Mike Trout, Tim Raines explaining how he played baseball on cocaine, Mark Buehrle admitting he drank beers during Game 3 of the World Series before getting the save and more. Other guests include A.J. Pierzynski, Rick Hahn, Michael Kopech, Nick Hostetler, Alec Hansen and Dane Dunning.

Chuck Garfien sits down with Hawk Harrelson and A.J. Pierzynski in their first interview together to discuss their unique relationship which goes back 25 years to when Pierzynski was in high school and was considered the most hated baseball player in Orlando, Florida. Hawk talks about convincing Ken Williams to sign Pierzynski as a free agent in 2005, the time he wanted to fight Texas Rangers pitcher Vicente Padilla after he beaned Pierzynski twice in a game. Harrelson tells the story about playing in a foursome with Michael Jordan, Jim McMahon and Mike Ditka. They also discuss the White Sox rivalry with the Twins in the 2000's, umpire Joe West, arm wrestling, Hawk's autobiography, AJ's plea to get Harrelson in the broadcasting wing in the Hall of Fame, their plan to call a White Sox game together next season, and much more.