SURPRISE, Ariz. — Fighting the effects of a sinus infection, White Sox right-hander Mike Clevinger allowed one run and three hits in five innings Wednesday against the Rangers in his second-to-last start of spring training. He struck out three, walked one and got eight ground-ball outs.
In a game that lasted 1 hour, 54 minutes, Rangers hitters were swinging early, a trend Clevinger has noticed all spring. He attributes it to the pitch clock.
‘‘Hitters aren’t going to want to sit there and play that clock game with pitchers as often,’’ Clevinger said. ‘‘They’re going to want to get their swings off and not have the clock in their subconscious. You’re going to see a lot more early contact from guys.’’
The run he allowed came on a home run by Clint Frazier in the second, the fourth homer Clevinger has yielded this spring.
Clevinger’s fastball sat in the low 90s, a couple of ticks below his norm.
‘‘I just think I didn’t have an extra gear,’’ he said. ‘‘I was an energy vampire today. I was just dead from a sinus infection. If you have that extra gear, it’s not a 93 mph fastball. It’s a different ballgame.’’
Eloy plays it safe
Eloy Jimenez returned to the Sox’ lineup as the designated hitter after he left a game Monday with cramping in his right calf. Jimenez was 0-for-2 with a strikeout.
‘‘I have too many things in the past,’’ Jimenez said of his injury history. ‘‘Wanted to be better safe than sorry.’’
Bummer set for spring debut
Left-hander Aaron Bummer, a key piece to the bullpen, is scheduled to pitch in his first spring game Friday.
‘‘We are going to take that one day at a time,’’ manager Pedro Grifol said. ‘‘We’ll see where he is after that. But that’s going to be one day at a time.’’
Bummer is behind the other pitchers because his offseason throwing program was stalled by recurring shoulder and lat issues. The goal is for him to be ready for Opening Day next Thursday.
Vaughn ‘good’ but still out
Grifol didn’t give a target date for when first baseman Andrew Vaughn will return to the lineup, but he said Vaughn — who hasn’t played in 10 days because of a sore lower back — is feeling ‘‘good.’’
The expectation remains that Vaughn, who is taking swings, will be ready for Opening Day.
‘‘It’s not going to take him too long to get ready for the season, so if he’s feeling good and he’s going to stay on pace, then he should be right where he needs to be when we start,’’ Grifol said.
Vaughn was batting .323 in 31 spring at-bats before the injury.
Zavala’s new headgear
Catcher Seby Zavala has a new, heavier catcher’s helmet this season after he finished last season on the injured list with a concussion.
‘‘I don’t want that to happen again, so I got the hockey mask,’’ Zavala said. ‘‘Heavy as can be, but it’s good. I took one off the head and could barely feel it.’’
A series of foul tips did him in late last season.
‘‘The first blow I took was in [Dylan] Cease’s almost no-hitter [Sept. 3], then I took foul tips off the head every time for the next two weeks,’’ Zavala said. ‘‘It took its toll over the course of a month, and I couldn’t really hang anymore.’’
Rangers 2, Sox 0; Royals 4, Sox 3
• Outfielder Oscar Colas provided a scare against the Rangers when he ran through a stop sign rounding third base, did the splits in the grass trying to stop and got up gingerly before staying in the game. Colas (.283) had two hits, including a double.
• Nick Avila pitched two scoreless innings and Reynaldo Lopez and Jimmy Lambert one each against the Royals. Jose Ruiz balked in the Rangers’ second run.
• Sox relievers lowered their ERA to 3.00, the lowest in the Cactus League. Last spring, the bullpen’s ERA was 6.85, the worst in Arizona.
• On deck: Giants at Sox, 3:05 p.m. Thursday, Glendale, NBCSCH, 1000-AM, Sean Manaea vs. Michael Kopech.
