Jake Burger reacts to viral cap tweet

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Here are four takeaways from White Sox Cactus League action on Tuesday.

Burger reacts to going viral
Jake Burger has gone viral.

The White Sox infielder tweeted a picture of his strangely sunburned bald head with a message of “I’ve got a bone to pick with whoever designed these Spring Training hats” late Saturday night from his @Burgatron13 account. That tweet almost immediately was picked up across the nation.

“I guess I’m part of pop culture,” Burger said with a broad smile. “At least the back of my head is.

“It’s amazing. I didn’t expect it to blow up the way it did. The article kind of made me seem like a villain. But I made it, you know. My mom was all ecstatic and stuff. My sister sent it to me. And then I’m like, ‘Holy [cow], this is crazy.’ She was all ecstatic and sent it around. All my family reached out to me and was like, ‘You made People.’”

Burger expected to get a reaction to the picture. But within one hour, there were already over 10,000 likes.

“I was like, ‘Wow,’” Burger said. “I expected it to be somewhat popular, but not the quote tweets and all that.

“People are creative out there. Somebody photoshopped Voldemort’s face on the back of my head and I was dying. It was funny.”

That hat and sunburn issue has been solved, according to Burger, who gave credit to Minor League clubhouse and equipment manager Dan Flood and Minor League assistant clubhouse manager Bryant Biasotti for their ingenuity.

“Yeah, the gaiters we wore last year and in 2020, we cut one of those up and kind of like stitched it in,” Burger said. “The clubhouse managers over there kind of got me fixed.”

Don’t forget about Adolfo
If Micker Adolfo had been able to stay consistently healthy during his previous seven seasons as part of the White Sox organization, he might be their established right fielder.

But injuries have plagued the powerfully-built Adolfo, who enters Spring Training out of options and trying to earn a spot on the big league roster.

“Last year, I was able to stay on the field and play, and you guys saw what I could do,” Adolfo said. “It's about staying healthy.”

Adolfo had 25 homers and 69 RBIs over stops with Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte last season, when he played 101 games. He has two homers in current Cactus League action, including a long opposite-field blast against the Dodgers on Monday.

“He’s a talent. Two days won’t go by in that coaches’ room where we don’t talk about him,” manager Tony La Russa said. “Plays defense, has a great arm. We know he’s out of options. Too many good players.

“He has to earn his way on and there is no doubt he is really looking good. He hit the home run, but he got a big single with two strikes in a rally situation. So, he is showing all kind of growth. He ain’t going to sneak through [waivers], so might as well be honest.”

Carlos Pérez in catcher’s mix
The backup catcher is an important position, because according to La Russa, that backup is going to play. The White Sox don’t want to overwork starting catcher Yasmani Grandal, especially early in the season, with La Russa talking of Grandal at designated hitter when he’s not behind the plate.

“It’s a long season and he puts a lot to it,” La Russa said of Grandal. “There are going to be a couple three games a week, you’re not going to want to push Yas that way. It would be counterproductive to us for a long season.”

Zack Collins and Seby Zavala appear to be the leading backup candidates. But Carlos Pérez, who will catch Wednesday in Surprise, Ariz., received a mention from La Russa after earning his praise last Spring Training.

“He’s the one who has to do the most to make the club,” La Russa said. “But why would we say no until we see him. It’s harder for him to make it but it’s not impossible.”

TA7 debuts
The first episode of "TA7: The Story of Tim Anderson," went live on the White Sox YouTube channel on Tuesday. It’s a five-episode documentary series, presented by Nike.

Scott Suttles, who was Anderson’s basketball coach at Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa, Ala., spoke about the White Sox shortstop as an introvert, but a leader as a high school player, via Zoom on Tuesday.

“He was like EF Hutton back in the day: when he did talk, people listened,” Suttles said. “He was kind of a like the proverbial floor general. He led by example in practice, hard worker in practice.”