White Sox left-hander Anthony Kay struggles in final spring start

MESA, Ariz. — White Sox left-hander Anthony Kay will look to put his final spring start behind him.

Kay allowed seven runs and seven hits, struck out four and walked four in 3 2/3 innings Monday against the Athletics. He finished his first spring training in three years with a 4.95 ERA and secured the No. 3 spot in the Sox’ rotation. His first start is Sunday against the Brewers.

‘‘[I was] pleasantly surprised with the fastball,’’ manager Will Venable said before the Sox’ 10-9 loss. ‘‘He’s aggressive with it in the zone and [has] a good mix beyond that. [He’s a] guy that controls the running game really well, too.’’

Kay breezed early on, pitching three scoreless innings. But he lost his command in the fourth, loading the bases on a single and two hit-by-pitches. He then got a popout and a sacrifice fly before walking Tommy White to reload the bases and serving up a grand slam to Drew Swift.

He was replaced by Jacob Heatherly to finish the inning but returned to yield two more runs without getting an out in the fifth.

‘‘We’ve talked all spring to get ahead and get into good pitchers’ counts,’’ Kay said. ‘‘That wasn’t what I did today. Definitely going to look over it a little bit with the pitching staff and see what we can change.’’

Pereira’s power

Outfielder Everson Pereira misplayed a sharp line drive to right field in the Sox’ 4-2 loss Sunday to the Mariners that resulted in a triple for Dominic Canzone.

It was a rare miscue by Pereira, who has held up reasonably well defensively playing in right and center field. He was a late scratch Monday with an illness but should be ready for Opening Day. He finished his spring training with two home runs, five RBI and an .899 OPS.

‘‘He’s made some nice adjustments at the plate,’’ Venable said. ‘‘He’s worked on getting to his path, getting to some balls, making sure he’s covering some pitches in the zone there. He’s got a ton of power.’’

Paez’s showcase

Right-hander Jedixson Paez didn’t leave the final impression he would have wanted at the end of spring training.

Making the Opening Day roster always was going to be an uphill battle for Paez, a Rule 5 Draft pick who hasn’t played above Single-A. He’s coming off a strained calf last season that cost him almost four months.

Paez allowed one run, three hits and two walks in 2‰ innings Saturday against the Reds. He said he was missing with his cutter to the glove side in the first inning and course-corrected on the fly. He finished with a 6.35 ERA in seven spring appearances (two starts).

Paez’s best pitch is his changeup, but he thrives on keeping hitters off-balance by using multiple pitches and having strong command. With right-hander Mike Vasil out for the season, Paez could step into his role as a multi-inning reliever.

A’s 10, Sox 9

Designated hitter Lenyn Sosa went 2-for-4 with a double and four RBI.

• Second baseman Chase Meidroth was 1-for-2 with a two-run double in the fourth inning.

• Third baseman Miguel Vargas was 0-for-2 with an RBI.

• High-leverage reliever Jordan Leasure pitched a scoreless inning.

• On deck: Sox open season at 1:10 p.m. Thursday at Milwaukee.