NewsGLENDALE, Ariz. -- Infielder Eduardo Escobar believes his best chance to break camp with the White Sox at the end of Spring Training is getting chances at multiple positions.
Escobar, who has played 508 of his 569 Minor League games at shortstop, is also working out this spring at second base and third base. He played second base exclusively during the winter in Venezuela but has also seen action in the outfield and on the mound during his Minor League career.
"I give a lot of credit to Joe McEwing and the coaches who are helping me," Escobar said. "My goal is to keep working hard and be ready for whatever they need. I'll do whatever it takes to make it to the big leagues."
Last season, Escobar hit .266 with 23 doubles and four triples in 137 games at Triple-A Charlotte. He was called up to the big league club in September and saw action at second base and shortstop. Overall, he's played in 58 games at second base in the Minor Leagues.
"I'm just preparing myself to play as many positions as I can, and we'll see," he said.
Danks would welcome Opening Day start
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- John Danks expects to pitch in front of a sellout crowd at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington during the first series of the season next month.
Whether he pitches on Opening Day is to be determined. What is certain is that Danks, who lives in Austin, Texas, is looking forward to kicking off the season in front of family and friends in the state where he grew up.
"Whether I do or not is not my decision, but everybody wants to pitch on Opening Day," Danks said. "I'm already getting asked for tickets to the series anyway. Everyone back home is a Rangers fan, and with them having the season they had the last two years and it being Opening Day, I'm already turning people away. I don't have enough tickets."
Philip Humber will start the club's first Cactus League game on Monday against the Dodgers, and Danks is set to start the road opener on Tuesday in Tempe, Ariz., against the Angels. Jake Peavy will pitch Wednesday at home against the Brewers, and Gavin Floyd will face the Rangers in Surprise on Thursday.
Danks, who went 8-12 with a 4.33 ERA for the White Sox last season, was drafted by the Rangers in the first round of the 2003 First-Year Player Draft and traded to Chicago before the start of the '07 season.
The White Sox signed him to a five-year, $65 million extension during the offseason. He has never pitched on Opening Day.
"I don't think playing the Rangers is that big of a deal anymore," Danks said. "Maybe my first couple of years it was because the coaches were still there and guys you played with were still there. But more than anything, Opening Day -- no matter where it is -- is awesome and it is an honor. Obviously, it being in my home state means I will have people there, but the fact that we are playing the Rangers doesn't weigh too much anymore."
Viciedo on the fast track to be left fielder
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Dayan Viciedo is used to change by now, or at least he should be.
The former third baseman, first baseman and right fielder is emerging as the starting left fielder for the White Sox.
"I worked out a lot in Miami this offseason in right field, but it's a change and you adjust," Viciedo said. "I really can't speak to the differences because I have not spent a lot of time out there, but with practice, I'll be fine."
Last season in the Minors, Viciedo played 95 games in right field and 11 at first base at Triple-A Charlotte. Overall, he's played 140 games at third base and 72 at first base.
He played in 21 games in right field for the big league club in 2011.
"It's a little bit different this time, because I had played right field and I understood the flies and how it plays," he said. "But I'm not worried about it."
Jesse Sanchez is a national reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @JesseSanchezMLB. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
