MINNEAPOLIS – The early stages of Bobby Dalbec’s big-league tenure with the White Sox were a whirlwind.

When Chase Meidroth was placed on the 10-day IL with a thumb injury, Dalbec with was called up from Triple-A Charlotte ahead of Monday’s 11:10 am ET game against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

He described that day as a grind, getting in late the night before an early first pitch. Along with the emotions of being promoted to the big leagues, he’d also be facing his former team. Dalbec played 331 games across five seasons for the Red Sox – 25 home runs in 2021 highlighted his time – before signing a minor league contract with the White Sox in January.

“It was cool,” Dalbec said of briefly returning to Fenway. “I didn’t really get to soak it in too much, just because it was a quick game and I’m running on fumes, but it was great to see some of the guys after and see some of the media dudes that I’ve been around for a long time. But yeah, obviously Fenway is a special place, but I’m turning the page and excited to compete for this team.”

After striking out in his lone pinch-hit at-bat on Monday, Dalbec was in the White Sox starting lineup for the first time Tuesday against the Twins in Minneapolis. He went 1-for-2 with a walk and a strikeout, batting eighth and playing third base.

His first hit with the White Sox came in the fourth inning against Twins starter Bailey Ober. Dalbec pulled a sweeper that barely stayed fair and rolled down the third base line for a double. The White Sox couldn’t capitalize on having runners at second and third base as Jake Amaya popped out to end the inning, but manager Will Venable hopes the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Dalbec can bring that kind of extra-base production to the lineup.

“He’s been swinging the bat really well in Triple-A,” Venable said before Tuesday’s game. “Hopefully he can provide a spark for us offensively. He’s got power to all fields and has improved his contact rate on pitches in the zone. Also like the defense, so just excited to see him do his thing tonight.”

Dalbec had been one of the Charlotte Knights’ most productive hitters to begin the 2025 season. Across 12 games and 48 plate appearances, he totaled nine runs, 15 hits, three doubles, one triple, four home runs, 13 RBI, one stolen base, two walks and 16 strikeouts. That’s good for a .326 batting average, .354 on-base percentage, .696 slugging percentage and a 1.050 OPS.

He expects to play some third base, first base and right field for the White Sox, but the 29-year-old even mixed in a few games at second base and shortstop with the Red Sox. He’s eager to do whatever it takes to help the team.

“Just contribute on all sides of the ball,” Dalbec said. “Obviously I have some power and I’d like to have that translate and contribute and drive some runs in, but take some extra bases, play good defense wherever they put me and just keep the energy up here.”

Joining a new team has been a relatively smooth process for Dalbec, who’s familiar with several members of the White Sox. Venable was the Red Sox bench coach in 2021, and Dalbec called him a great communicator and a calm presence who cares about his players. He also has past connections to his new teammates, calling baseball a small world, which has helped the transition.

“It’s been good,” Dalbec said. “I played with [Andrew] Vaughny in Team USA. I played with Matt Thaiss in Team USA. Penn [Murfee] was with me in Japan too, and I played with Steven Wilson since we were in high school in Colorado. Obviously played for Will [Venable] in ’21 in Boston, so we all kind of know each other from being around and seeing each other, so it’s been easy to acclimate for sure.”