Dylan Cease -- back in Chicago with the Padres -- says last year with the White Sox 'wasn't enjoyable in really any way'

CHICAGO — Dylan Cease initially thought of the logistics after being traded from the Chicago White Sox to the San Diego Padres.

After all, the Padres were on their way to South Korea to open the season in March against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The right-hander figured it out, just like he has on the mound during a bounce-back season with the Padres.

Cease had a 2.20 ERA in 2022, finishing second in American League Cy Young Award voting, but his ERA climbed to 4.58 last season with the Sox. Now everything’s clicking again: He’s 4-2 with a 2.55 ERA ahead of Wednesday’s start against the Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Cease said the success is a continuation of a process he started in 2023.

“It kind of took me a full year to figure out what works for me,” he told reporters Monday at Wrigley Field. “That’s baseball sometimes. We’re not robots out there. Sometimes mechanical cues and feels can take some time.

“Last year wasn’t enjoyable really in any way, but I can sit here now and say I got a lot out of it. I learned kind of what doesn’t work and got back to hopefully now what is working.”

Cease is back in Chicago for the first time since the March 13 deal that sent him to San Diego for minor league pitchers Drew Thorpe and Jairo Iriarte, minor league outfielder Samuel Zavala and major league reliever Steven Wilson.

Cease has kept up with a number of his former teammates.

He said of the historically bad start for the Sox: “I think they have more talent than that, for sure. Baseball is one of those games where anything can happen, funky things can happen. For all we know, they’ll go on a nice little win streak and kind of even that out.”

Cease has been impressed with pitcher Garrett Crochet, who moved from the bullpen to the rotation.

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