DETROIT — There are dads whose kids play Little League, Babe Ruth and maybe even high school or college baseball.
Then there are the White Sox’ dads, such as those who get to pal around with their sons on the job this weekend — dads who shared their sons’ dreams that they would be in a major-league clubhouse someday.
The Sox invited their players’ fathers to join the team for its three-game series in Detroit. Some flew on the team charter, and all are staying in the most upscale hotel one can imagine.
Some sat at their sons’ lockers Friday, just soaking it all in.
‘‘This is fricking crazy,’’ said Frank Crochet, left-hander Garrett’s dad. ‘‘This is amazing. It’s pretty awesome.’’
Frank never played high school ball but physically filled out later and became something of an accomplished slow-pitch softball player. He was on the field Friday, taking batting practice, playing catch and shagging flies.
Frank muscled one over the left-field wall. He was the only dad to go deep.
‘‘I had a feeling he would be leading the charge,’’ said Garrett, who turned 25 on Friday.
Garrett has established himself as a dominant pitcher in his first season as a starter, and Frank isn’t the least bit surprised.
‘‘I want to say I’m not shocked at all, but you can’t act surprised when he does stuff,’’ he said. ‘‘Garrett has always overachieved, has always been above the rest.
‘‘I believe he will be in the Hall of Fame. Like, I firmly believe it.’’
Manager Pedro Grifol lauded Garrett’s character and makeup recently, and Frank wasn’t surprised to hear that, either.
‘‘I would love to take credit for all that,’’ he said. ‘‘But kids turn out how they want to, and Garrett is the man he is because that’s who he wanted to be. You can lay a foundation as a parent, but he’s who he is because he wanted to be that. And it’s awesome.
‘‘I don’t want to say I’m proud because that insinuates I didn’t expect it. And I do expect it. I can’t even put it into words.’’
Grifol was behind the dads’ weekend, having seen it done in his days with the Royals.
‘‘This is really important,’’ Grifol said. ‘‘The dads deserve this opportunity. They sacrificed so much for their kids, who wouldn’t be here without them. They should enjoy the big-league life for a few days.’’
A cynic might say the Sox, who are 21-57 after their 5-1 victory Saturday against the Tigers, are a team only a father could love. Gregory Banks, Chris Brebbia, Scott Fedde, Michael P. Kopech, Bobby Lopez, Gary Soroka, Bob Wilson, Luis Robert Sr. and Martin Maldonado Sr. are also on the trip and loving every bit of the experience, based on their reactions.
In addition, the fathers of coaches Drew Butera and Mike Tosar and training staffers Josh Fallin and Jessica Lubinski are on the trip. Sal Butera, a former major-league catcher, is a scout for the Blue Jays.
‘‘It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me,’’ right-hander Erick Fedde said. ‘‘Our parents sacrificed a lot for us to get here.’’
Scott Fedde experienced the day of a big-league starter Friday, even listening in on his son’s pregame meeting with pitching coach Ethan Katz and catcher Korey Lee.
‘‘It was role reversal,’’ the elder Kopech said, ‘‘because all the players are on the field shagging flies for their dads when it used to be us.’’
That was the easy part. The tough part about being a dad can be watching the games.
‘‘You live and die with every pitch when your son is a pitcher and every swing, I guess, if your son is a hitter,’’ Kopech said. ‘‘If you’re present here or on the app, you’re calling the umpire all the bad names you can think of.’’
Just like Little League dads.
