Fun and bonding in White Sox clubhouse

GLENDALE, Ariz. — What goes on in the clubhouse stays in the clubhouse, but the walls of the White Sox’ locker room at Camelback Ranch can’t hold the laughter inside.

Team meetings have featured a variety of “presentations” from mostly younger players, arranged by first-year manager Rick Renteria to keep things loose, get prospects to bond with veterans and, in general, to promote a tight bond.

“It’s entertaining,” closer David Robertson said without offering much detail. “And it’s a good chance to get these guys out of their comfort zone by forcing them to do something they don’t want to do. It helps them open up and feel like they’re part of the team.”

There was a WWE wrestling show and alma mater themes. Nebraska Cornhuskers Dan Jennings, Cody Asche and Aaron Bummer had their own special moment.

Miami Hurricane Zack Collins, the Sox’ first-round draft choice last June, is up Monday.

“I’ll probably be more nervous [doing that] than I will playing,” Collins said.

Last year, the Sox had Drake LaRoche drama. This kind is much better.

“I understand what he’s trying to do,” veteran Todd Frazier said. “We have good stuff going on in the morning to break up the grind. The meetings have been fun.”

All of this is not unique to spring training. Rockies manager Bud Black, under whom Renteria served as a bench coach with the Padres, is taking it to a high level in camp. Mike Scioscia and Joe Maddon have their tricks and methods.

“They are getting to know each other,” Renteria said. “They are getting to connect in different ways. But that’s what anybody does. You just try to help your club bond, get to know each other as quickly as possible, and then they go out there and play.’’

The days of when veterans big-timed the rookies and prospects are fading away. The young guys know their place, but they feel more comfortable asking a favor from a veteran, and that seems to be a good thing.

“In this camp, there is no shying away,” said Nate Jones, the longest-tenured Sox. “You cannot just go about your day doing your thing. He’s getting everyone involved, and the cool thing is the young guys feel comfortable coming over asking questions. The guys who have been around a bit are willing to share information because we’ve been there and done that.

“Everybody is pulling from the same rope. [Renteria] has everyone jelling.”

Whether it translates into wins on the field is open to debate. Players and managers, for the most part, insist bonding has value.

“The more comfortable you feel within the environment you’re working in, when you go out into the field it makes it a little easier,” Renteria said.

The preparation for the players on stage is the toughest part.

“They have a lot of homework to do, and then they have to come in and present it,” Frazier said. “You feel like you’re back in school. But it’s fun stuff.”

Courtney Hawkins, a first-round draft pick in 2012, hasn’t played in the majors but is an observer of spring-training clubhouse culture, especially from the young guys’ side.

“The team is a lot different now,” Hawkins said. “You can tell there is a lot of chemistry in here. I love what Renteria is doing, trying to make this a close-knit group. A lot of people are hopping on board.”

“It’s a family-type thing. He means business, he wants stuff done right, but he wants to have fun at the same time. We’re going to roll together, not as individuals.”

Follow me on Twitter @CST_soxvan.

Email: dvanschouwen@suntimes.com