Early schedule leads to many reunions for new Chicago White Sox second baseman Nicky Lopez: ‘It’s going to be fun’
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Nicky Lopez tipped his cap to the schedule makers.
“It’s crazy,” the Chicago White Sox second baseman told the Tribune on Thursday afternoon.
The season started for Lopez and the Sox at home against the Detroit Tigers. That gave Lopez, a Naperville native and Naperville Central graduate, the opportunity to play in front of friends and family.
The Atlanta Braves were next on the schedule, the team Lopez most recently played for before being traded to the Sox during the offseason.
And this weekend, the Sox are facing Lopez’s first professional organization, the Kansas City Royals.
“It’s kind of funny how it all stacked up,” Lopez said. “Getting that home opener, wearing the pinstripes for the first time, being back in Chicago.
“(Then) seeing my friends with the Braves. And then coming here, my first time back since getting traded, it’s going to be fun.”
Lopez went 1-for-4 in Thursday’s 10-1 loss to the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. He received a nice hand from the crowd when he stepped into the batter’s box for the first time in the third inning. He responded with a single.
“Nicky played very well here,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “Hustles, respects the game. He did a lot of good things here, he hit .300 (in 2021) with a .365 on-base. A home-grown guy not too far down the road at Creighton (where he played college baseball).”
Grifol said the reception Thursday was “well-deserved.”
“He’s had some good years in Kansas City,” Grifol said. “It doesn’t surprise me, the fans here are a class act.”
Lopez is one of four players on the 26-man roster who have played for the Royals. Four members of the Sox front office, including general manager Chris Getz, and four members of the coaching staff, including Grifol, have ties to the Royals.
Lopez played parts of five seasons with the Royals (2019-23) before being traded to the Braves in July. He was a steady presence defensively, earning recognition as one of four finalists for American League Gold Glove at second base in 2020.
Lopez admitted there was one adjustment he had to make Thursday.
“Usually I get right off the elevator and go right to the right (to the home clubhouse),” he said. “I had to take a left (Thursday to the visitor’s clubhouse).”
Lopez, 29, is happily adjusting to life with the Sox. He called the March 28 opener at Guaranteed Rate Field “a blessing.”
“I always thought about playing in Chicago, wearing a Chicago uniform,” Lopez said. “And to be able to wear the White Sox uniform, a uniform I put on as a fan way back when, is very special and something that meant a lot to me and my family as well.”
He made an impact early in that game against the Tigers, fielding a Parker Meadows grounder that took a wicket high hop and getting the out at first. Instead of potentially a big inning, the White Sox held the Tigers to a run in the third.
“I always say my job is to help those pitchers out, whatever it may be,” Lopez said. “That was a wild hop, I don’t know what it really hit. But luckily I was able to field it and be on my toes instead of flat-footed.
“I was ready for anything and I’ve never seen a hop like that before on a big-league field, but it was wild and I was happy I was able to make a play for them.”
Lopez entered Friday 3-for-16 with a walk in five games, but his biggest contributions have come defensively. It’s one of the reasons he was included in the six-player trade with the Braves in November.
He’s part of a defense that ranked first in the American League in fielding percentage (.991) entering Friday.
“You can take positives away from anything,” Lopez said. “Obviously we didn’t want to start the way we’ve started (1-5 through Thursday), but those are one-run ballgames. We’ve played really good defense. A hit here, a pitch here, we could have easily won two or three of those.
“But you’ve got to pick it up, you’ve got to throw it. You can’t give teams extra outs. If we can minimize that and do our job that way, more wins will come.”