Sale’s teammates understated but supportive

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White Sox players were understated Sunday in their comments about teammate Chris Sale’s blowup in the clubhouse a night earlier.

“As a team, we’re doing good,” said pitcher James Shields, who came to the Sox last month in a trade with the Padres. “Things happen in baseball. As far as Chris goes, that’s more of an internal, clubhouse thing. We’re trying to keep it in-house as much as we possibly can.”

Shields said he has known Sale a long time but has come to respect him more as a teammate.

“He’s one of the better teammates I’ve been around,” he said. “He’s definitely a team player. He’s a winner. He wants to take the ball every five days and win ballgames.”

Todd Frazier, who joined the Sox in an offseason trade with the Reds, said the focus has to be on team play, not distractions.

“We have everybody’s back. We do, through thick and thin,” he said. “Bottom line is whatever happens, happens. It’s really about controlling what you can control. It’s a saying I like to say all the time. The bottom line is go out there and play every day to the best of your ability.’’

Both said the incident was surprising.

“I’ve seen a lot of crazy things happen in the game,” Shields said. “But sometimes emotions get the best of us. Sometimes these things happen. We just gotta move forward as a group and regroup and try to win ballgames.”

Frazier said the game can be “crazy.”

“You talk to umpires during games and stuff, and it’s like you think you’ve seen it all baseball-wise,” he said. “It’s tough to talk about. It’s just something different.’’

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