Chicago Sports

Mrs. Patmore is getting out of the kitchen and stepping onto the stage.

Beloved British actress Lesley Nicol is now serving up herself as the main course in a new production that recently debuted at Chicago’s Greenhouse Theater Center. Called “How The Hell Did I Get Here?” it’s what Nicol describes as an “autobiographical musical.”

It takes audiences on her own journey from her beginnings as a dedicated stage and TV actress to her memorable role as the affable head chef in the cultural phenomenon “Downton Abbey.”

But it does more than that, the actress says.

“It is my story, and we do go over the events of my life, but the whole point of it is for all of us to sit down and have a think about our own way,” Nicol said by phone between rehearsals for the production, which has a limited run now through April 3.

“I hope seeing it ignites memories in the audience’s mind of stuff that has happened to them. Because we’re all in the same boat. We’ve all asked that question: ‘How the hell did I get here?’ We all have highs and lows. We are no different from each other in that sense, so this show is more about what it’s like to be human really.”

The show came to fruition several years ago — and had its first short trial at her London-based alma mater in 2017 — when Nicol was living in Los Angeles and met composer/wrier Mark Mueller.

“Randomly, I said to him one day, ‘I want to do a theater show, but I don’t want to do cabaret because there are people who’d do that better than me.’ I’m an actress that sings,” Nicol said. “That’s different. The next thing you know, we were sitting down working on it, and it was taking on a life of its own. We couldn’t stop.”

Mueller — a songwriter who has sold 32 million records and won two Emmys for his work with Disney, Broadway and artists like Amy Grant and the band Heart — originally was supposed to contribute just one or two songs. But he and Nicol quickly found a kinship, and he ended up writing 10 numbers for the production.

“Mark really encouraged me,” Nicol said. “He said, ‘You know, I think you’ve turned into a writer.’ “

Writing was new territory for Nicol, whose long career has included working in musicals like “Mamma Mia” and “Our House” in London’s famed West End and moving into a number of animated voiceover and television roles, like playing a mafia queen in Shonda Rhimes’ “The Catch” and, in “Supernatural,” playing a mean old witch. She also had a role in the Paul Feig “Ghostbusters” reboot.

Nicol previously had a short run at the Chicago Cultural Center for a theater production called “Admission: One Shilling.”

In “How The Hell Did I Get Here?” Nicol tells the story of where it began for her — enrolling in the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where she learned to hone her voice.

“I was an acting student, but we were lucky enough to have a West End musical director who taught us,” she said. “He was working on the show ‘Jesus Christ Superstar,’ the original production, and, in the end, he got me into that show. He was a terrific mentor. I was very shy, and he literally made me open my mouth. And that started me having the confidence to sing.”

Directed by Luke Kernaghan (Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre of Scotland and Ireland’s Abbey Theater), “How The Hell Did I Get Here?” moves to New York, San Francisco and Pittsburgh after its Chicago kickoff — around the time Nicol comes to life again as “Mrs. Patmore” with “Downton Abbey: A New Era,” the second film of the series, set for a May 20 release.

Nicol said she couldn’t divulge any spoilers about the movie, which has been called a mix of “mystery and the movies.”

“It will look fabulous on the big screen,” she said. “They go to the south of France — though I didn’t get to go on that trip, of course, because Mrs. Patmore doesn’t get to leave the kitchen. But it’s stunning. It made me laugh, and it made me cry. And we can only hope that people will love it.”

Whether it’s in the movies or in the theater, Nichols said what she does is always about “having a shared experience — that’s why I do what I do.”

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Siera Santos, who spent more than four years on the Chicago sports-media scene, is joining MLB Network as a studio host and reporter. She’ll make her debut during the first week of the season.

From 2015 to 2020, Santos appeared on NBC Sports Chicago, then Fox 32 Chicago as a sports anchor and reporter. She left to fill the same roles in her hometown at Fox 10 Phoenix.

Santos will host MLB Network’s highlight show “Quick Pitch” and appear on “Big Inning,” the whip-around program on MLB.TV.

She joins other MLB Network talent with Chicago ties, such as former Cubs Dan Plesac, Carlos Pena and Mark DeRosa and former White Sox Jim Thome. Former Cub Cameron Maybin, who joined Marquee Sports Network’s stable of analysts this week, also will appear on MLB Network.

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Monitoring new Bears general manager Ryan Poles’ moves as the legal tampering period starts Monday and the league year begins Wednesday:

March 16

3:15 p.m.: As expected, the Bears cut veteran linebacker Danny Trevathan. Trevathan was part of the Bears’ defensive rebuilding job when arriving in Chicago in 2016 but struggled the past two seasons. Last year, he played in only five games before being put on IR for the second time.

3 p.m.: When the NFL’s league year began, four Bears became free agents: tight end J.P. Holtz, guard Alex Bars, running back Ryan Nall and safety Teez Tabor.

9 a.m.: Former Bears cornerback Artie Burns is signing a one-year deal with the Seahawks, a source confirmed. He’ll join former Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai there.

7:15 a.m.: Bilal Nichols, a Bears’ fifth-round pick four years ago, cashed in Wednesday when he agreed to sign a two-year, $11 million deal with the Raiders that featured $9 million guaranteed. Nichols had totaled eight sacks and 22 quarterback hits over the past two years combined. Last season, Nichols recovered two fumbles.

March 15

11:30 p.m.: Bears Pro Bowl return man Jakeem Grant is leaving to sign a three-year, $18 million deal with the Browns

10:30 p.m.: The Bears agreed to terms on a one-year deal with former Raiders linebacker Nicholas Morrow that can be worth up to $5 million, a source told the Sun-Times. Morrow started 11 games in 2020 but spent last year on injured reserve after hurting his ankle during the preseason.

10:30 p.m.: The Bears are signing former Packers interior offensive lineman Lucas Patrick to a two-year, $8 million deal with $4 million guaranteed, a source confirmed to the Sun-Times. Patrick can play either guard or center for a team that lost James Daniels to the Steelers earlier in the day.

10 p.m.: The Bears are re-signing long snapper Patrick Scales to a one-year contract, sources told the Sun-Tines.

10:30 a.m.: Former Bears offensive lineman James Daniels is leaving for the Steelers. Daniels agreed to a three-year, $26.5 million deal Tuesday, NFL Network reported.

Former Bears general manager Ryan Pace drafted Daniels at No. 39 overall in 2018, and he played 54 games over four seasons. The Bears moved him among both guard positions and center, and ultimately he did not impress new general manager Ryan Poles enough to re-sign him.

Click here for full story.

March 14

4 p.m.: The Bears officially cut defensive tackle Eddie Goldman. Friday, sources said they’d made the decision.

1 p.m.: As new Bears general manager Ryan Poles continues to rework the roster, the team is getting younger — and possibly better — on the defensive line.

The Bears agreed to a three-year, $40.5 million deal with former Bengals defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi in the opening hours of free agency Monday, NFL Network reported. He’ll get $26.4 million guaranteed.

Click here for full story.

March 11

5 p.m.: The Bears claimed running back Darrynton Evans, a third-round pick of the Titans just two years ago, off waivers. He has 16 career rushes for 61 yards.

3:30 p.m.: The Bears also plan to cut nose tackle Eddie Goldman, who had a disappointing 2021 and no longer fit their scheme.

11:30 a.m.: As expected, the Bears told running back Tarik Cohen they would be cutting him with an injury designation about a year-and-a-half after he tore knee ligaments returning a punt against the Falcons.

March 10

4 p.m.: In a franchise-altering move, the Bears agreed to trade edge rusher Khalil Mack, the face of the franchise, to the Chargers for a 2022 second-round pick and a 2023 sixth-rounder. Ryan Poles’ first major move as the Bears’ GM signified the start of a rebuild, while Mack’s Bears career ends as a risk worth taking.

March 8

5 p.m.: The Bears agreed to bring back center Sam Mustipher, tight end Jesper Horsted and guard Lachavious Simmons on one-year deals at the league minimum. All three are exclusive-rights free agents. Players with less than three seasons of experience must accept such contract tenders.

3 p.m.: The NFL’s deadline to apply the franchise tag came and went Wednesday without the Bears making anyone an offer. That means receiver Allen Robinson will hit free agency Monday after playing last year on the tag.

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For the first time since 2013, the Bears are going to have a new starting punter.

Pat O’Donnell, whom Phil Emery drafted in the sixth round eight years ago, is expected to sign with the Packers, per NFL Network. The longest-tenured Bears player became a free agent Wednesday.

Appearing in 128 games for the Bears, he played for three head coaches and under two general managers, not counting head coach Matt Eberflus and GM Ryan Poles, who were hired earlier this year.

O’Donnell had one of the best statistical seasons of his career last year; his 46.2 yards per punt was the second-highest mark of his career. He had a 72-yard punt, too, which is tied for the second-longest kick of his career.

He’ll join the Packers, who are setting about improving a special teams unit that cost the team its playoff game against the 49ers. The Bears will look for a punter to join the two remaining members of its special teams core: kicker Cairo Santos and snapper Patrick Scales. The Bears re-signed Scales on Wednesday.

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SALT LAKE CITY — Bulls guard Alex Caruso has a lot to say.

That’s good because he’s in a locker room where some truths need to be heard.

An inconsistent second half, such as the one in the Bulls’ 125-110 loss Wednesday to Jazz, can’t happen at this point of the season. The embarrassment Monday against the Kings shouldn’t happen at any point in the season.

Not if the Bulls want to get where they’ve talked about as a group since training camp and definitely not with only 13 regular-season games left.

”Right now, we’re just having preliminary tests, right?” Caruso said Wednesday, doing his best to explain the mentality the Bulls need. ”We’re figuring out our weaknesses — at least the ones that are correctable and we can control. Not the ones that other teams scout and are going to try and game-plan against us, but the ones that we can control as far as mentality, the competitiveness to win each possession. . . . Those are what we need to look at.”

And not a few weeks from now or when April begins. Caruso wants those issues dealt with sooner than later, as the Bulls have started 0-2 on their road trip. He says that from experience.

Yes, forward DeMar DeRozan stared down LeBron James in an Eastern Conference finals and blinked. Sure, center Nikola Vucevic made a few playoff appearances with the Magic, only to be dismissed in the first round.

But Caruso is the only Bulls player who has kissed the championship trophy, and he did it in unique circumstances. He was sequestered in the NBA’s COVID bubble for months before winning the title with the Lakers in 2020.

So while DeRozan, Vucevic and Caruso have been trying to talk to the rest of the team about the difference between the regular season and the playoffs, Caruso knows that only will go so far. Until players actually go through it, there’s truly no way to prepare them for what’s coming.

”Yeah, there’s no way to replicate it until you actually get there,” Caruso said. ”We have to do our best to try and prepare as much as possible, and taking steps back like we did against [the Kings] is something we can’t do if we want to get to what we want to do and get to what we’ve talked about all year.

”Regardless of who we have on the team, who is out there playing, the focus, the mentality, the sacrifice, the energy, the ability to emotionally wipe the slate clean and start fresh — all those things are things we can talk about and prepare for. But it’s not something you can turn off and on. It’s something we’ve really got to start taking seriously and ramping up for these last few weeks and games.”

It was a message that appeared to resonate in the first half against Jazz, after which the Bulls trailed by only five. Then Jazz star Donovan Mitchell took over in the third quarter, scoring 25 points on 7-for-9 shooting from three-point range.

Still, the Bulls withstood that onslaught and trailed by only four with 6:52 left. It was short-lived, however, as the Jazz went on a 14-0 run against a Bulls defense that just couldn’t get stops.

Mitchell finished with a game-high 37 points. Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 33.

”Those attention-to details-things,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. ”I think we’re playing hard; they fight. But there’s an experience component that we’re going through that I hope we learn sooner than later.”

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SALT LAKE CITY — The Windy City Bulls’ practices just took on a lot more meaning.

According to coach Billy Donovan, forward Patrick Williams was cleared for full-contact practices Wednesday and will spend the next few days working out with the Bulls’ G League affiliate. He might play in a game with them, too.

Donovan still offered no timetable for Williams’ exact return from surgery on his left wrist, but it’s now days instead of weeks.

”We’ll try and get him some legitimate contact over the next few days, possibly doing some work with the Windy City team,” Donovan said. ”All of that hasn’t necessarily been ironed out as far as if he’ll play games or just practices, but he’s been cleared by doctors to go through contact.

”He needs certainly a ramp-up time, and however long that is, that’s the next step. I think I’ll probably find out how much time [the Bulls’ medical team] feels he needs to get to a place where he’s comfortable to get out there and play.”

Donovan already made it clear Monday that Williams won’t be returning to his starting job when he comes back — at least not initially. He will be on a minutes restriction, and Donovan and the rest of the coaching staff don’t want to break up the starting unit just yet.

Depending on how Williams responds in his initial playing time, as well as matchups, that might change late in the regular season and into the playoffs. But after playing in only five games before suffering the injury Oct. 28, Williams has some catching up to do.

His first order of business, however, will be to get through the workouts with Windy City and see where he is when the Bulls get back into town Saturday.

”It’s moving in that direction; I feel good about that,” Donovan said when he was asked whether Williams would be back at some point in March. ”But a lot of it is going to depend on how it goes once he [practices fully] and what [the] medical [team] feels will be an ample amount of time for him to actually get comfortable to go into a game.”

The Bulls visit the Suns on Friday, then are off until hosting the Raptors on Monday. Donovan said the game against the Raptors is a long shot, but he didn’t take it off the table.

Bouncing Ball

The news isn’t as positive for guard Lonzo Ball, who is making progress but still is dealing with discomfort in his surgically repaired left knee.

”Did a little bit more, and I think this is going to be normal for him,” Donovan said. ”When they keep pushing him, there’s a little discomfort, so they have to back him off a bit. Still not at the place where he’s at a full sprint right now. I don’t know if it’s a step back. It’s small increments where he’s up here and then back here, and all of a sudden he’ll take the next step.”

That next step would be doing full running and cutting without any pain from the bone bruise. As Donovan pointed out Monday, bone bruises in the knee can be tricky because they heal differently for different individuals.

Ball last played Jan. 14 and initially was shut down after that because of the bone bruise in the knee. Further testing found the meniscus needed to be repaired, and the Bulls gave a six- to eight-week timetable for his return. So far, it has been about seven weeks since Ball’s surgery.

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GLENDALE, Ariz. — First thing Kendall Graveman did was apologize.

For hitting Jose Abreu with a pitch in Game 4 of the ALDS last year.

Good move.

“That was a pretty good little icebreaker,” Graveman said Wednesday.

Signed to a three-year, $24 million contract after the season to be a key back end piece of the Sox bullpen, it was Graveman’s pitch that hit Abreu and incurred manager Tony La Russa’s wrath after the game. La Russa believed Astros manager Dusty Baker ordered it.

“I didn’t mean to hit him,” said Graveman, whose first impression in a Sox uniform Wednesday left observers thinking the team nice guy award could be his to lose. “I know Tony gave me a little fit there in the postseason and I apologized to Tony. I said, ‘I didn’t mean to, Tony,’ and he said he realized that now.”

La Russa joked that he would make Graveman and Abreu room together on the road.

Abreu, who was hit 22 times last season, might have been sore about it then but all is well now that they’re teammates.

“It’s OK. It’s fine,” Abreu said. “It’s my family now.”

A ground ball pitcher who struck out 61 batters in 56 innings between the Mariners and Astros last season, Graveman posted a 1.77 ERA while allowing one extra-base hit to right-handed hitters. He is eager to find his niche in a deep bullpen that also includes Liam Hendriks, Craig Kimbrel, Joe Kelly, Aaron Bummer and Garrett Crochet.

“And just being around the guys a few days, the character, makeup, you can already get a feel there’s no egos,” Graveman said.

Eloy: Play hard but ‘smarter’

Left fielder Eloy Jimenez tore his left pectoral muscle with a needless jump over the wall at Camelback Ranch in a Cactus League game, and it was a lesson learned. But he won’t stop playing hard, he said.

“Being smarter, but not stopping playing hard,” he said. “Because if I stop playing hard, I’m going to be a DH, and that’s what I don’t want. So I think I learned more about taking care of me, but [I’ll be] playing hard like always.”

Bring on the Cubs

In Thursday split-squad action against the Cubs, right-hander Liam Hendriks is the only big league pitcher slated for work. Andrew Vaughn (right field), Gavin Sheets (first base), Jake Burger (third base), Romy Gonzalez (shortstop), Seby Zavala (catcher) and Yoelqui Cespedes (center field) are among the starters in Glendale. Yermin Mercedes will DH and lead off and Oscar Colas will play center field in Mesa.

Both games are seven innings.

Revised schedule

The original season-opening home series against the Twins has been rescheduled at the end of the season from Oct. 3-5. The original three-game series at Kansas City will be rescheduled as part of split doubleheaders on May 17 and Aug. 10 Kauffman Stadium. The third game is scheduled for Aug. 22 in Kansas City, previously an off day for both clubs.

The lockout wiped off the first two series of the season. The Sox open April 8 at Detroit (12:10 p.m. CT). The home opener is April 12 vs. Seattle (3:10 p.m. CT).

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Former Bears linebacker Khalil Mack was watching the television show “Bel Air” with his fiancee and son last week when he got a call from agent Joel Segal telling him he had been traded to the Chargers and would be heading to Los Angeles.

“Kind of a strange coincidence,” he said. “But it was weird to hear.”

Mack was surprised to be traded but not shocked. He knew the Bears landscape had changed when general manager Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy were fired after the 2021 season. He had not talked to new GM Ryan Poles until after Segal broke the news that Mack had been traded to the Chargers for a 2022 second-round draft pick and a 2023 sixth-round pick.

“Different GM. Not the GM that traded for me. So you never know what can happen in those situations,” Mack said Wednesday in a press conference with Los Angeles reporters. “I use common sense in certain situations, so I felt like maybe it was a chance. But who knows?”

Change was expected when Poles was hired to replace Pace. But the Mack trade was the clearest indication that the Bears under new management would be more of a renovation than a transition. Poles and new coach Matt Eberflus are putting their own stamp on the franchise and it’s more and more looking like a repudiation of the Pace regime.

Players who could have been part of the transition — even from a 3-4 to a 4-3 defensive alignment — have been discarded: Mack was traded. Defensive lineman Bilal Nichols signed with the Raiders. Nose tackle Eddie Goldman was released. Defensive end Akiem Hicks is on the market and a long shot to return.

On offense, guard James Daniels, who at 24 easily could have been a keeper, signed an affordable three-year, $26.5 million contract with the Steelers. Even Justin Fields — the most valuable asset Pace left Poles — has to prove he’s indeed the franchise quarterback the Bears are hoping for.

When Pace was hired in 2015, he kept Jay Cutler, tried to made 3-4 outside linebackers out of Jared Allen and Willie Young and found a spot for Shea McClellin. But early indications are that Poles and Eberflus are a little more strict about fitting round pegs into round holes.

The housecleaning continued Wednesday, when the Bears released linebacker Danny Trevathan — an anticipated move after the 31-year-old Trevathan missed 12 games last season because of a knee injury.

The Bears also announced previously reported free-agent signings: former Bengals defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi (three years, $40.5 million), former Packers center/guard Lucas Patrick (two years, $8 million) and former Raiders linebacker Nicholas Morrow (one year, $5 million).

As for Mack, he said his reunion with head coach Brandon Staley, who was his position coach with the Bears, took some of the sting out of the trade. “I kind of went from bittersweet to kind of excited,” he said.

He also expressed gratitude for his time in Chicago, particularly a glorious first season in 2018 with Vic Fangio and Staley, when the Bears’ defense was the best in the NFL and Mack was runner-up to Aaron Donald for the Defensive Player of the Year Award.

“It’s real special to me,” Mack said. “Especially that first year, having all the pieces and all the coaching staff together. Having the players — Kyle Fuller to Prince [Amukamara] to Eddie [Jackson] to [Adrian] Amos to Eddie Goldman to Leonard Floyd, Danny Trevathan, Roquan [Smith] …

“I could go on an on. But just knowing what that felt like out there — playing with those guys, it was a special time. A special moment in my life, those four years [that] I’ll never forget. And I think that organization for taking the chance on me.”

But while the trade signaled a new direction for the. Bears under Poles, it’s also a fresh start for Mack, who knows his star diminished last season when he missed the last 10 games because of a foot injury. He indicated he is “100% good to go.”

“Understanding what the narrative is about me right know, I can’t wait,” Mack said. “You turn on the TV, you hear what they’re saying. It’s like, ‘OK.’ I’ll be on myself any day.”

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You can take the horse racing out of Arlington Park, but you can’t take the Arlington Million out of horse racing.

At least, that’s the position of Churchill Downs Inc., which announced Tuesday that Illinois’ premier stakes race will live on this summer at its namesake track in Louisville instead of at the historic northwest suburban oval the company is selling to the Chicago Bears.

The Arlington Million will take place in Kentucky on Aug. 13, about 335 miles south of where it’s been held for most of the past four decades — until Churchill Downs cashed out of the Illinois horse racing industry with the sale of Arlington International Racecourse last fall.

Eight other races normally held at Arlington are also being moved south of the state border by Churchill Downs.

But it’s the Million that will feel most out of place. It’s been the highlight of Arlington’s summer thoroughbred racing calendar since it was first run in 1981, when it was heralded as the world’s first race with a million-dollar purse.

Nearly 40 years and three ownership changes later — pending the closure of the sale to the Bears, which is expected to happen early next year — and the Arlington Heights track is being marketed as a trade show venue while the high-stakes race goes on in Louisville.

Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes said he has “mixed emotions” about the use of part of his village’s name in a race taking place in another state.

“Certainly, if they’re doing it to honor the Duchossois family, I have no problem with it,” Hayes said, referencing the death earlier this year of former Arlington Park owner Richard Duchossois. “But it’s a little interesting that they would do that after selling the property.”

Churchill Downs representatives couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Instead of the sport of kings, Arlington’s website is now touting its “many attractive qualities to help you create a first-class event,” catering to expositions, business seminars — or even just its “enormous parking lot,” which is available for rent.

The track is also soliciting an auctioneer to help sell off its remaining “personal property,” according to a request for proposals listed on the site.

Chris Block, president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, which represents horse owners and trainers, said the Million’s move “is another reminder that Churchill Downs shuttered Arlington Park and abandoned Illinois horse racing, compromising hundreds of jobs throughout our state.

“It underscores the necessity of developing another track in Illinois to fulfill the legislature’s vision of expanded horse racing, enhanced gaming opportunities and the growth of all the jobs that our sport and industry supports,” Block said.

Arlington president Tony Petrillo has said Churchill Downs is looking for another site to open a racetrack in Illinois, but the company hasn’t revealed specific plans. He couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.

Either way, it’s not the first time the Arlington Million has been run in another state. It was held in Toronto in 1988 while the Arlington racetrack was rebuilt from the ground up following its notorious 1985 fire.

The Million was scrapped altogether in 1998 and 1999 when former owner Duchossois closed the track during a dispute with state legislators over gambling taxes.

This time around, Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen too has cited high taxes as the reason they’ve pulled out of Illinois horse racing. Meanwhile, the corporation is still cashing in with its other suburban property: Rivers Casino in Des Plaines.

The Bears have said they’re still evaluating the potential of the track, for which they’ve agreed to pay $197 million, as the site of a new stadium. The team has also emphasized they won’t bring back horse racing if the sale does close.

Hayes said Arlington Heights officials are “moving full speed ahead” to assist the Bears “in any way they can” to close the sale.

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GLENDALE, Ariz. — Maybe this will be the year.

This could be the one when Jose Abreu, model teammate, dogged worker, likeable leader by example, former MVP and Rookie of the Year and three-time All-Star, achieves his goal of winning a World Series with the White Sox, the only team he has played for in nine major league seasons.

The Sox are built to win, with more top players surrounding Abreu, 35, than ever before.

It’s also the final year of Abreu’s three-year, $50 million contract, and the Sox have young talents like Andrew Vaughn and Gavin Sheets probably ready and able to take over at first base if need be. So maybe this will be Abreu’s last year as well.

It’s hard to imagine these Sox without Abreu. But speaking at spring training Wednesday for the first time this year, while saying his focus is on this season and winning a championship, he also said when the season is over he will have to assess things, see how he feels and talk with his family about his future, which isn’t necessarily bound to the Sox.

“We haven’t even started the season,” he said through translator Billy Russo when asked about his contract status. “Let’s see how the season goes and let’s see if we accomplish all the things we want to. I’m pretty sure I’m going to consult with my family, see how I’m feeling after the season, see how they’re feeling and we are going to make a decision afterward. Right now, the focus is just to enjoy this season and have fun.”

Asked if was just as determined to remain in a Sox uniform as he always has been, Abreu said, “I don’t know. We’re talking about two different years, two different situations. I have to see what happens with this season.”

“Once the season ends, I will have to make a decision and see if I want to continue or if there’s a chance to be here or if there’s a chance to be in another place. We’ll see once the season ends.”

That marked a different tone than what Abreu set in 2019 while in the final year of the six-year, $68 million deal he signed out of Cuba. Abreu felt a deep loyalty to the organization and chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and a commitment to riding out the lean, losing rebuilding years long enough to enjoy the fruits of them.

“If the White Sox don’t sign me, I’m going to sign here anyway. I’m going to sign myself here,” he said at the All-Star Game in 2019.

A month later, he said chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told him and his family “several times” that he would not wear a jersey other than a Sox jersey.

When this contract is up, though, Abreu will be looking at his late 30s in the near future, although his production (30 homers, 30 doubles, 117 RBI) was admirable last season at age 34 despite drops in slugging percentage (.481 from .617) and OPS (.831 and .987) compared to his MVP 2020 season.

In any event, Abreu said he came to camp feeling good physically.

“I’ve been ready to enjoy this year and to have success and to accomplish all of the goals that we want to accomplish,” he said. “We’ll see what happens but I’m very happy to be here.

Eloy Jimenez, for one, would like that to be for a good while longer. Abreu’s presence on this team “is really important,” he said.

“Next year will have business; this year is what we need to take care of,” Jimenez said.

“I don’t know. Let’s enjoy this one,” Jimenez said when asked about the possibility of this being Abreu’s last year. “It is what it is. Let’s enjoy this one. This is the year. Let’s hope he comes back.”

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