One week in, Jirschele 'staying in the moment' as Sox new third-base coach

HOUSTON -- Justin Jirschele didn’t get a great deal of work in his seventh game as the White Sox third-base coach during a 6-1 loss to the Astros on Saturday night at Minute Maid Park.

At least, not after there were two outs in the first inning after Andrew Benintendi's walk, Andrew Vaughn's single and Gavin Sheets' RBI single plated Benintendi for the White Sox lone run. But it has still been a surreal week for Jirschele, who moved from Triple-A Charlotte manager and the organization’s assistant field coordinator at the Minor League level to the big leagues last Thursday when manager Pedro Grifol and three of his staff members were dismissed.

"Things can change quickly in this game, as we all well know,” Jirschele told Chicago media members prior to the White Sox dropping to 30-94. "Just grateful for this opportunity to be here.

"It certainly comes with some circumstances that aren’t necessarily good, and you understand that, too. But at the end of the day, you get here, you get your feet wet and get going with the guys."

The 34-year-old was in his second season at the helm for Charlotte, but also has managed at Double-A Birmingham (2021-22), High-A Winston-Salem (2019) and Single-A Kannapolis (2017-18). He played at five different Minor League levels for the White Sox from 2012-15, including a Great Falls affiliate no longer tied to the team.

His connection runs deep. But when asked about being possibly considered for the full-time White Sox managerial position beyond ‘24, Jirschele understandably steered away from the topic.

"To be honest, I’m not even worried about that, or even thinking about that,” Jirschele said. “I pride myself on staying in the moment. I know I have a job to do each and every day with the infield and coaching third base and trying to do everything I can in my power to help this team win."

"Jirsch is well loved by all these guys, well respected,” said White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore. “To have that guy around these guys, it’s been huge for us. It’s been fun working with him so far."

Twenty-nine players have jumped from Charlotte to the White Sox this season, with reliever Gus Varland making his debut in the eighth inning on Saturday. Jirschele mentioned there were only three players to introduce himself to upon arriving in Chicago.

Kansas City’s victory over the Reds Saturday, coupled with the White Sox loss, officially eliminated the South Siders from postseason possibilities. It wasn’t the most crisp of games for a team that has played better under Sizemore, despite the 2-5 record overall.

"Tonight wasn’t one of our better ones, but hopefully we get back on it tomorrow,” said Sheets, who had two hits. “We still have a chance to win a series in Houston, which is all we can ask for. We made some mistakes that we don’t want to make and we’ll clean up and tomorrow will be a good one."

"If you’re not careful, teams will take advantage,” Sizemore said. “We’ve just got to remind these guys, keep going, keep playing sharp, don’t lose focus."

The White Sox also lost an 18th straight Chris Flexen start. Flexen (2-12) defeated the Rays on April 26 and beat the Rays again in Florida on May 8, but neither he nor the club has won in any other start.

He retired the first seven Astros (66-56) on Saturday, before Houston scored three in the third and one in the fourth.

"It’s frustrating. Especially when you want to go deep in games,” said Flexen, who allowed four runs in four innings. “Continue to battle and try to put together solid outings, and when you don’t, that’s the most frustrating part."

As for the Jirschele family's big week, it was a full-circle moment once Justin received his promotion to the Majors.

Mike Jirschele, Justin’s father and current manager of the Royals’ Triple-A affiliate in Omaha, is a veteran third-base coach who served in that role during Kansas City’s back-to-back World Series trips in 2014-15. Justin was able to share this big league promotion with his entire family.

"At the end of the day, I was still able to tell them that I’m going to the big leagues,” said Jirschele of the news he received while managing Charlotte in Louisville. "My wife was stunned.

"My mom was there, who has been with my dad in the big leagues for a long time. A lot of tears and a lot of joy. A lot of ‘What?’ All of the emotions. And then it was, ‘All right, we have to pack up and get to Chicago.’"