CSN announces its 2016 White Sox on-air/digital coverage details

107 Regular Season Games, including the Season Opener on Monday, April 4 & Home Opener on Friday, April 8! 

Joining CSN’s 2016 White Sox announcing crew - featuring Ken “Hawk” Harrelson & Steve Stone - will include new play-by-play home game announcer/southside native Jason Benetti! 

Plus – Exclusive White Sox content 24/7 on CSNChicago.com, Every Home and Road Game in HD,

“Crosstown Cup” action vs. Cubs and more!

Chicago, IL (March 23, 2016) – Comcast SportsNet -- the television home for the most games and most comprehensive coverage of 2016 Chicago White Sox featuring defending American League strikeout champion/perennial All-Star Chris Sale (274 K’s in 2015), first baseman/slugging superstar Jose Abreu (.303 avg. w/66 HR’s & 208 RBI in his first two big league seasons), the arrivals of third baseman/two-time NL All-Star Todd Frazier (35 HR’s & 89 RBI in ‘15), veteran shortstop/2007 NL MVP Jimmy Rollins (winner of four Gold Gloves in his 16-year career), second baseman Brett Lawrie & outfielder Austin Jackson, along with the return of emerging stars Carlos Rodon & Avisail Garcia and veteran standouts Jose Quintana, Adam Eaton, Melky Cabrera and David Robertson among others -- has announced its detailed 2016 White Sox telecast schedule and accompanying on-air network  & digital coverage on CSNChicago.com. 

The 2016 White Sox season on Comcast SportsNet includes 107 live regular season games, starting off with the SEASON OPENER against the Oakland Athletics on Monday, April 4 at 9:00 PM CT, featuring the veteran White Sox announcing tandem of Ken “Hawk” Harrelson and Steve Stone on the call LIVE from the O.co Coliseum in Oakland, CA.  Opening Day coverage begins at 8:30 PM CT with the season premiere of White Sox Pregame Live presented by The Kowalis Family of Dealerships, hosted by Comcast SportsNet’s White Sox studio tandem of Chuck Garfien and Bill Melton, along with CSN’s White Sox beat reporter Siera Santos providing live reports from Oakland.  The game will be immediately followed by an expanded edition of Subaru White Sox Postgame Live, featuring White Sox manager Robin Ventura’s live post-game press conference, along with player post-game reaction, expanded highlights, detailed analysis and more. 

Comcast SportsNet will also televise the 2016 White Sox HOME OPENER on Friday, April 8 at 3:00 PM CT when the White Sox host the division rival Cleveland Indians.  Coverage begins at 2:00 PM with an expanded, one-hour U.S. Cellular Field LIVE REMOTE Home Opener edition of White Sox Pregame Live presented by The Kowalis Family of Dealerships with the game immediately followed by an expanded edition of Subaru White Sox Postgame Live, also live from U.S. Cellular Field. 

Beginning this season, Comcast SportsNet welcomes new White Sox play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti to the broadcast booth as he will provide the call for every White Sox home game (with the exception of the home opener and Cubs “Crosstown” series) with partner Steve Stone, along with two road games in Toronto (Apr. 25 & 27).  A southside Chicago-area native and graduate from Homewood-Flossmoor H.S., Benetti graduated from Syracuse University in 2005, where he earned bachelor's degrees in broadcast journalism, economics and psychology. In 2011, he also earned his juris doctor from Wake Forest University's School of Law. Prior to signing on with ESPN in 2011, Benetti called the play-by-play for the Class AAA Syracuse Chiefs, and has worked for Fox Sports 1, Westwood One Radio and Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.  Legendary White Sox broadcaster Ken “Hawk” Harrelson will shift to calling all road games this season, but will be on the call for the 2016 Home Opener on April 8, along with popular “Crosstown” series against the rival Cubs in late July.

In-game highlights of note for the 2016 White Sox season include a brand new NBC Sports graphics package, along with the return of CSN’s popular super slo-mo technology, which is capable of showing slow-motion replays of over 2,000 frames per second.  In addition, fans can once again look forward to “Pitch Trax” in all games this season, which animates the precise pitch location throughout the game in a variety of angles, along with CSN’s “Telestrator” into select game telecasts this season, detailing key plays, defensive field formations and much more.  Plus, viewers will once again get an in-depth look at MLB’s instant-replay system, which, upon a manager’s challenge, will review home runs, ground rule doubles, fan interference, along with numerous other in-game scenarios.

Among the 2016 White Sox regular season schedule highlights on Comcast SportsNet include 52 match-ups in the ultra-competitive AL Central Division featuring a total of 13 match-ups against the defending World Series Champion Kansas City Royals, along with 13 games apiece against the Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians, and Minnesota Twins.  In addition, viewers can look forward to four games against AL MVP Josh Donaldson and the defending AL East champ Toronto Blue Jays, four games against the defending AL West champion Texas Rangers, four games against AL Wildcard reps New York Yankees and five against the Houston Astros, plus – an expanded interleague schedule including a pair of games against the defending NL Champion New York Mets, along with additional NL East battles vs. Atlanta, Miami, Philadelphia, and Washington featuring 2015 NL MVP Bryce Harper.  ALSO -- Comcast SportsNet will carry all four White Sox-Cubs “Crosstown Cup” interleague games this year.  (NOTE: the July 25 & 27 “Crosstown” games will be “White Sox” telecasts on Comcast SportsNet, while the July 26 & 28 games will be “Cubs” telecasts).   

From an online perspective, Comcast SportsNet’s website, CSNChicago.com, delivers comprehensive 24/7 White Sox coverage all season long, including the following highlights:

• Live stream of White Sox manager Robin Ventura’s post-game press conferences (sponsored by Xfinity) following every home game.

• White Sox “Insider” Dan Hayes returns for his fifth season on the beat. Follow him on Twitter @CSNHayes for the latest team/player news and inside access 24/7.  Hayes will also file daily stories/video reports and will make regular on-air appearances throughout the season on White Sox Pregame Live presented by The Kowalis Family of Dealerships, SportsTalk Live, SportsNet Central and in select Comcast SportsNet White Sox home games.
• White Sox Pre/Postgame Live host Chuck Garfien will once again offer on-going reports and insight via his popular “Sox Drawer” posts, which will include exclusive video content.  Garfien can also be followed on Twitter 24/7 @ChuckGarfien, for up-to-the-second White Sox news. 
• “White Sox Pulse,” a one-stop social media hub that reveals the latest trending topics and player buzz from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.  Plus, “White Sox Pulse” aggregates all White Sox player tweets, along with fan tweets that utilize the hashtag #WhiteSoxTalk. Fans can also get interactive on Twitter by utilizing hashtags #WhiteSoxTalk for the latest news, rumors, trades and more by following @CSNWhiteSox.
• CSNChicago.com digital baseball reporters JJ Stankevitz (@JJStankevitz) and Paul Roumeliotis (@PaulRoumel) will also be providing game day reports, analysis and features.

• In addition to his on-air duties, Garfien will partner with Hayes and CSN’s White Sox baseball beat reporter Siera Santos (@SieraSantos)this season on CSNChicago.com, providing multi-platform coverage via on-going special features and more. 

• WhiteSoxTalk, CSNChicago.com’s high-velocity, real-time, comprehensive White Sox news and opinion section featuring original commentary, reporting and aggregation. WhiteSoxTalk is under the banner of NBC SportsTalk, NBC’s successful digital franchise on NBCSports.com that includes ProFootballTalk, HardballTalk, ProBaskteballTalk, ProHockeyTalk, CollegeFootballTalk and GolfTalkCentral. SportsTalk was extended to CSNChicago.com through the creation of BlackhawksTalk, BullsTalk, CubsTalk, WhiteSoxTalk, ChiFireTalk, BearsTalk, PrepsTalk, IrishTalk and B1GTalk which contains interactive content and continually updated insights from the network’s digital and on-air talent.

• “The Honda Road Ahead,” presented by the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana Honda Dealers, will provide fans with an expanded look at upcoming White Sox opponents and key pitching match-ups.

• CSN Chicago’s White Sox content will also be distributed via its digital network of partnerships including NBCSports.com, NBCNews.com, Yahoo! Sports and Xfinity.com.

For the ninth-straight season, Comcast SportsNet will produce every White Sox regular season home and road game in a high-definition (HD) format.   In addition, ten White Sox games are currently scheduled to be telecast on Comcast SportsNet Plus (see attached schedule).  Comcast SportsNet Plus (CSN+) telecasts are provided to Comcast SportsNet affiliates and distributed to viewers when two live events are scheduled simultaneously.  CSN+ is available in high-definition on Comcast/Xfinity ch. 201 in the Chicago area/South Bend, IN & on Comcast/Xfinity ch. 285 in the Peoria, Springfield, Rockford and Champaign markets, along with being made available in DIRECTV, DISH Network, AT&T U-verse, RCN, and WOW! homes among others; viewers are urged to visit CSNChicago.com’s CHANNEL FINDER for complete channel location details). Comcast Cable and RCN subscribers can also watch all CSN+ games in standard definition on CLTV. 

Before a number of White Sox games on Comcast SportsNet (including all weekend telecasts), fans can tune to White Sox Pregame Live presented by The Kowalis Family of Dealerships featuring a half-hour of pre-game analysis, interviews and the very latest White Sox news (NOTE: for weeknight 7:00 PM game start times or earlier, pre-game coverage can be found SportsTalk Live presented by The Chevy Silverado featuring host David Kaplan or SportsNet Central presented by Comcast Business).  Following the majority of all games, viewers can look forward to the most comprehensive post-game wrap-up show on Subaru White Sox Postgame Live featuring live coverage of White Sox manager Robin Ventura’s post-game press conferences and live locker room interviews with White Sox players.  Following primetime editions of White Sox Postgame Live, Comcast SportsNet will air GMC SportsNet Central with the most complete recap of the day’s top local and national sports news.

Comcast SportsNet

2016 Chicago White Sox Schedule

Regular Season: (every game available in HD)

1. Mon, April 4 9:00 pm @ Oakland (Road/Season Opener!)
2. Wed, April 6 9:00 pm @ Oakland
3. Thu, April 7 2:30 pm @ Oakland
4. Fri, April 8 3:00 pm vs. Cleveland (Home Opener!)
5. Sun, April 10 1:00 pm vs. Cleveland
6. Mon, April 11 3:00 pm @ Minnesota
7. Thu, April 14 12:00 pm @ Minnesota
8. Fri, April 15 6:00 pm @ Tampa Bay
9. Sun, April 17 12:00 pm @ Tampa Bay
10. Mon, April 18 7:00 pm vs. Los Angeles Angels
11. Thu, April 21 1:00 pm vs. Los Angeles Angels
12. Fri, April 22 7:00 pm vs. Texas
13. Sun, April 24 1:00 pm vs. Texas
14. Mon, April 25 6:00 pm @ Toronto
15. Wed, April 27 6:00 pm @ Toronto
16. Thu, April 28 6:00 pm @ Baltimore
17. Fri, April 29 6:00 pm @ Baltimore
18. Sun, May 1 12:30 pm @ Baltimore
19. Tue, May 3 7:00 pm vs. Boston
20. Thu, May 5 7:00 pm vs. Boston
21. Fri, May 6 7:00 pm vs. Minnesota
22. Sun, May 8 1:00 pm vs. Minnesota
23. Tue, May 10 7:00 pm @ Texas
24. Wed, May 11 1:00 pm @ Texas
25. Fri, May 13 6:00 pm @ New York Yankees
26. Sat, May 14 12:00 pm @ New York Yankees
27. Wed, May 18 7:00 pm vs. Houston
28. Thu, May 19 7:00 pm vs. Houston
29. Fri, May 20 7:00 pm vs. Kansas City
30. Sat, May 21 1:00 pm vs. Kansas City
31. Mon, May 23 7:00 pm vs. Cleveland (CSN+)
32. Tue, May 24 7:00 pm vs. Cleveland (CSN+)
33. Thu, May 26 7:00 pm @ Kansas City
34. Fri, May 27 7:00 pm @ Kansas City
35. Sun, May 29 1:00 pm @ Kansas City
36. Mon, May 30 12:00 pm @ New York Mets
37. Tue, May 31 6:00 pm @ New York Mets
38. Fri, June 3 6:00 pm @ Detroit
39. Sat, June 4 3:00 pm @ Detroit
40. Tue, June 7 7:00 pm vs. Washington
41. Wed, June 8 7:00 pm vs. Washington
42. Fri, June 10 7:00 pm vs. Kansas City (CSN+)
43. Sun, June 12 1:00 pm vs. Kansas City
44. Tue, June 14 7:00 pm vs. Detroit
45. Wed, June 15 7:00 pm vs. Detroit
46. Fri, June 17 6:00 pm @ Cleveland
47. Sat, June 18 5:00 pm @ Cleveland
48. Tue, June 21 6:00 pm @ Boston
49. Wed, June 22 6:00 pm @ Boston
50. Fri, June 24 7:00 pm vs. Toronto (CSN+)
51. Sat, June 25 1:00 pm vs. Toronto
52. Tue, June 28 7:00 pm vs. Minnesota (CSN+)
53. Wed, June 29 7:00 pm vs. Minnesota
54. Fri, July 1 7:00 pm @ Houston
55. Sat, July 2 3:00 pm @ Houston
56. Sun, July 3 1:00 pm @ Houston
57. Mon, July 4 1:00 pm vs. New York Yankees
58. Tue, July 5 7:00 pm vs. New York Yankees
59. Fri, July 8 7:00 pm vs. Atlanta (CSN+)
60. Sun, July 10 1:00 pm vs. Atlanta
61. Fri, July 15 9:00 pm @ Los Angeles Angels
62. Sat, July 16 8:00 pm @ Los Angeles Angels
63. Mon, July 18 9:00 pm @ Seattle
64. Wed, July 20 2:30 pm @ Seattle
65. Thu, July 21 7:00 pm vs. Detroit
66. Fri, July 22 7:00 pm vs. Detroit
67. Sat, July 23 6:00 pm vs. Detroit
68. Mon, July 25 7:00 pm vs. CUBS
69. Wed, July 27 7:00 pm @ CUBS
70. Fri, July 29 7:00 pm @ Minnesota
71. Tue, Aug 2 6:00 pm @ Detroit
72. Thu, Aug 4 12:00 pm @ Detroit
73. Fri, Aug 5 7:00 pm vs. Baltimore
74. Sun, Aug 7 1:00 pm vs. Baltimore
75. Tue, Aug 9 7:00 pm @ Kansas City
76. Wed, Aug 10 7:00 pm @ Kansas City
77. Fri, Aug 12 6:00 pm @ Miami
78. Sat, Aug 13 6:00 pm @ Miami
79. Tue, Aug 16 6:00 pm @ Cleveland
80. Thu, Aug 18 6:00 pm @ Cleveland
81. Fri, Aug 19 7:00 pm vs. Oakland (CSN+)
82. Sun, Aug 21 1:00 pm vs. Oakland
83. Wed, Aug 24 7:00 pm vs. Philadelphia
84. Thu, Aug 25 7:00 pm vs. Seattle
85. Sat, Aug 27 6:00 pm vs. Seattle
86. Tue, Aug 30 6:00 pm @ Detroit
87. Wed, Aug 31 12:00 pm @ Detroit
88. Thu, Sept 1 7:00 pm @ Minnesota
89. Fri, Sept 2 7:00 pm @ Minnesota
90. Sat, Sept 3 6:00 pm @ Minnesota
91. Mon, Sept 5 3:00 pm vs. Detroit
92. Tue, Sept 6 7:00 pm vs. Detroit
93. Fri, Sept 9 7:00 pm vs. Kansas City
94. Sat, Sept 10 6:00 pm vs. Kansas City
95. Tue, Sept 13 7:00 pm vs. Cleveland
96. Wed, Sept 14 7:00 pm vs. Cleveland
97. Thu, Sept 15 1:00 pm vs. Cleveland
98. Fri, Sept 16 7:00 pm @ Kansas City
99. Sat, Sept 17 6:00 pm @ Kansas City
100. Wed, Sept 21 6:00 pm @ Philadelphia
101. Fri, Sept 23 6:00 pm @ Cleveland
102. Sat, Sept 24 6:00 pm @ Cleveland
103. Mon, Sept 26 7:00 pm vs. Tampa Bay (CSN+)
104. Tue, Sept 27 7:00 pm vs. Tampa Bay (CSN+)
105. Thu, Sept 29 7:00 pm vs. Tampa Bay
106. Fri, Sept 30 7:00 pm vs. Minnesota (CSN+)
107. Sun, Oct 2 2:00 pm vs. Minnesota

107 Regular Season Games – 53 home, 54 away

Schedule Subject to Change

All Times Central Time