The 38-year-old designated hitter said he felt worn down at the end of last season, and it took him a little longer to recover.

"Your body, as you get older, you feel different," Thome said. "Still, I feel good now."

Thome hit 34 homers last season with a .245 average and 90 RBIs. His long homer in the seventh inning of the one-game playoff against Minnesota on Sept. 30 gave the Sox a 1-0 win.

It was homer No. 541 for the slugger who broke into the majors as a third baseman in September 1991 with Cleveland before leaving for Philadelphia in 2001. The Phillies traded him to Chicago before the 2006 season.

"I would like to hit 600 homers. I would love to win a World Series," Thome said. "I would love to see my (18-month-old) son watch what I've done."

Thome needs 59 homers in the next two seasons to reach No. 600. His last full season with fewer than 30 was 1995, when he hit 25 for the Indians.

Thome, who has never been linked with steroids, said he was surprised by the recent revelations about Alex Rodriguez' steroid use.

"Unfortunately, it seems like we can't move on," Thome said. "Personally, I don't think he ever needed to do it. He's that good."

Notes: The White Sox deadline for position players to report is Thursday. Among the more intriguing players to arrive Wednesday was Cuban INF Dayan Viciedo. Manager Ozzie Guillen indicated Viciedo's bat gives him a shot to make the team. ... Rookie SS Gordon Beckham, the club's first top 10 draft pick in 17 years, found himself in a hitting group with Thome and Jermaine Dye on Tuesday. "I was trying to play it cool," he said. Then a coach asked him what he thought about hitting with the two men. "It hit me right there," Beckham said. "I said, 'You shouldn't have said that. Now I'm going to hit terrible."'