Burr tweeted he'd break out. He was right.

CHICAGO -- There was a tweet from the @MLB account sent on Feb. 21 asking, “Who’s going to break out this year?”

White Sox reliever Ryan Burr had the confidence to pick himself as the answer among the plethora of tweets in the replies. But the 27-year-old hurler now can explain the story behind that Tweet.

“This offseason we had some meetings with some mental skills coaches,” Burr told MLB.com during an interview this weekend. “So one of the things we learned about was goal-setting. What putting your goals out there into the public does for you.

“It really keeps you accountable. Everybody and their mother knows you are out there saying you are going to do something. It keeps you accountable and trying to be the best you can every time out there. That was one of the reasons I did it. The other reason was just kind of like a joke. I guess it stuck for some people.”

Burr’s performance since coming up to the White Sox in late May has been no laughing matter, throwing 8 2/3 scoreless innings while striking out six, walking three and allowing just one hit. Manager Tony La Russa used Burr in a high-leverage role this past Wednesday in Pittsburgh, calling on him to finish off the sixth with a runner on first and two outs. Burr did the job, helping the White Sox end a five-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory.

But he isn’t thinking about the role as much as just being prepared to pitch at any time.

“It’s easy to put too much pressure on yourself in those situations,” Burr said. “I just try to look at it as just another opportunity to go out there and do my job. Shouldn’t let the score, the situation really reflect how I pitch. I should try to pitch the same way every time out there.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t feel a little more pressure in that situation, but it’s nice. It’s why I play the game. You want to be one of those guys counted on when it matters the most. Pretty cool situation for me to get into. Whenever the phone rings and it has my name, just trying to be ready and do the best I can.”

That Twitter vote of self-confidence didn’t work out perfectly for Burr, as he heard it on social media upon struggling in his first Cactus League appearance. But Burr, who was making his first appearance since having Tommy John surgery in 2019, took the caustic comments in stride.

“That’s Twitter for you. You gotta be careful out there,” a smiling Burr said. “I really did that honestly to use it as an accountability thing and push myself and do all the little things I didn’t do last time around I was up here.

“Just to put my eggs in one basket and give it the best thing I can give it. That’s what it comes down to.”

Rain, rain, go away
Saturday’s contest against the Mariners started in a delay covering more than an hour with severe weather passing through the area of Guaranteed Rate Field . The forecast for the rest of the homestand, running through Thursday afternoon, features daily periods of rain or thunderstorms, giving La Russa and his staff something else to think about as they put their daily plan together.

“I know the forecast for the week is rain here and there, but our guys are ready to play,” La Russa said. “It's just part of it, and you just deal with it. The biggest thing is don't get distracted.

“You don't come to the park thinking you're going to get rained out. You don't start the game thinking it's not going to get finished. You just stay in the now and play the inning you're playing. That's all clichés, but sometimes that's the only thing you've got to fall back on.”

They said it
“What I think is straightforward is these are men, not machines, and when you struggle, there's two ways you can go, on opposite ends, right? You cannot care and you just walk around and whatever happens, happens. Or you can try too hard. And you rather take the trying too hard because it's easier to back off.” -- La Russa, on his group pressing during struggles on offense and a recent 1-6 stretch