White Sox closer Liam Hendriks returned to the mound in the sixth inning of a 7-5 victory over the Brewers on Friday, striking out Orlando Arcia, Tyrone Taylor and Daniel Robertson.

It was the first appearance for Hendriks since March 17, due to painful kidney stone issues, as if there are any other kind.

“Anybody thinking about having kidney stones, I highly recommend against it,” said a smiling Hendriks during an in-game Zoom, adding he has passed the stone. “A little better now than I was. There is no pain in my abdomen area, which is nice because that was excruciating.

“I’ve dealt with pain before. Tried to get in a different position, nothing helped so it was over and over and over again.”

Hendriks has held up his Dr. Pepper drink of choice during previous post-outing Zooms and admitted Friday a need to hydrate more with water because of the large amount of coffee and animal proteins he consumes.

“Screaming pain” in Hendriks’ lower abdomen, which sent him to the local emergency room one night, actually helped him play catch during this interim period because he made sure to have correct mechanics so no bad habits developed. His velocity was down a little Friday, but Hendriks feels on track to be Opening Day ready.

“The fact I got three strikeouts and didn’t walk anybody, that’s a big plus,” Hendriks said. “The fact I had the natural hat trick, which is the strikeouts with the fastball, slider and curveball, which is nice. The fact I made some people look more uncomfortable in the box than the average Joe by throwing that bat in the dugout, that was nice. The main thing was being around the zone and the breaking balls making sure they’re in the right position as well.

“My big takeaway is fastballs up, breaking balls down, which I was able to accomplish. Take a day off and get back after it Sunday. Hopefully [I’ll get] the same scenario, and we’re ready for the season.”

White Sox returning to Schaumburg
The 2021 White Sox alternate training site once again will be at Wintrust Field in Schaumburg, Ill., where the White Sox worked with the Schaumburg Boomers to make a number of upgrades for 2020 usage. According to Chris Getz, the White Sox assistant general manager/player development, a 13-game schedule has been set with the Brewers and Cubs to play against their alternate site squads.

“There will be a set of games at [the] Brewers stadium and we’ll host games in Schaumburg and have games in South Bend, [Ind.],” Getz said. “And we have one game at Guaranteed Rate Field vs. the Cubs group when the Major League team is on the road.”

Getz happy with Minor League minicamp
Getz mentioned outfielder Yoelqui Cespedes and pitchers Caleb Freeman, Jared Kelley, Andrew Dalquist and Matt Thompson as a few players who have impressed during the team’s Minor League minicamp.

“We’ve enjoyed having these guys here in the minicamp,” Getz said. “We’ve created some backfield games with the Dodgers [and] other teams locally. It’s always nice to get these guys playing against another organization.

“This group as a whole is in a really good spot. Before you know it, Minor League camp will be here and hopefully a Minor League season. That’s when the true test begins, when you really start feeling the emotions of Major League baseball. The staff has done a good job keeping these guys fresh and prepared for what’s in front of them.”

Third to first
• Carlos Rodón’s last Cactus League start was another stellar performance, as the southpaw struck out six Brewers over 4 2/3 innings. Rodón allowed his first run and first walk in Arizona but finished with 16 strikeouts and nine hits against that one earned run and one free pass over 13 2/3 innings.

• With just three Cactus League games remaining for the White Sox, No. 3 starter Lance Lynn will pitch during Monday’s off-day in camp at Camelback Ranch. Rodón will stay back and do the same on Wednesday with the team traveling to Anaheim on Tuesday night.

• Yoán Moncada had a 10-pitch at-bat against Eric Yardley in the top of the sixth before launching a mammoth two-run homer. Moncada fouled pitch No. 9 off the inside of his right leg and seemed to be slowed around the bases. José Abreu, who was on first, was in motion on four straight 3-2 pitches fouled off by Moncada.

• Micker Adolfo homered and Jonathan Stiever pitched scoreless baseball during a 7-0 victory over Cleveland during a “B” game in Goodyear, Ariz.

He said it
“We need to make sure that he's OK as a human, that he's OK as a person and in the right mental state, which he seems to be, which is good. He's at that point where he's kind of accepted it, and he's working hard to get back as soon as he can. We're making sure that we keep him in our thoughts and making sure we help out any way we can in getting him back on the field.” -- Hendriks on Eloy Jiménez