Day 3 of White Sox camp was relatively quiet. Manager Robin Ventura appears to be acclimating himself rather nicely. He is so non-discript, I guess I’ll compare him to a ninja.

There have been times when I don’t see him at all, but seconds later I look and he’s standing right next to me. The man just shows up, and while doing it, makes very little noise.

Having been around a number of MLB teams, I have never seen a Manager throw batting practice on a back field in spring training. That infinite streak is now over, as Ventura went to the mound and tossed a few on Thursday. He is also great with the fans, signing autographs nearly every day.

General Manager Ken Williams must be loving his quiet spring. No fires to put out, no comments to explain. He said it on Thursday that this is Ventura’s team, and he is going to stay out of the way. So far, so good. I even saw him laugh the other day. I am not saying he doesn’t laugh, but I will say I saw him laugh for the first time in many a spring, the other day.

It’s all positive so far at Sox camp 2012.

It appears everyone loves Chris Sale.

He sure looks like he could be a good one, but my worry is that with all the great things everyone is saying about him, he’ll feel like he has to fulfill some unattainable expectations. From talking to him, I will admit he has a good head on his shoulders, and appears to let nothing affect him, but pressure is inherent in this job and others expectations can play on one’s psyche.

Mark Parent is a huge man. The new Sox bench coach is the exact opposite of Joey Cora, the former B-C. Coincidentally, Ventura is the opposite of Guillen. Really though, Parent is massive. He stood next to A.J. Pierzynski the other day, and made him look small. A.J. is not huge, but he sure isn’t small.

I can’t wait for Parent to stand next to the other Sox giant, Adam Dunn. If the Sox are involved in a bench clearing brawl, and Dunn and Parent both went after the pitcher, the guy would have a heart attack.

The only difference is Dunn comes off like a gentle giant, while Parent just looks intimidating. Mind you, I am half his size, so maybe I just realize he could crush me at any time.

Something just seems different with this team so far. I think I’ll call it a quiet confidence.

I know I have high expectations for this team. So much so, that I have already put money on them this year.

All the players will be in camp in the next few days. That’s when the real fun begins.