White Sox Minor League Weekly Update: August 16-22

Charlotte Knights (36-59 - 25 GB)

MVP Mikie Mahtook .591 BA, 3 HR, 8 XBH, 7 R, 8 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K

Blake Rutherford .240 BA, 1 HR, 2 XBH, 4 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 4 K Jake Burger .143 BA, 1 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 8 K Gavin Sheets .273 BA, 1 HR, 3 XBH, 4 R, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K Romy González .667, 2 HR, 5 XBH, 4 R, 8 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K Yermín Mercedes .263 BA, 1 HR, 2 XBH, 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 4 K Micker Adolfo .273 BA, 3 XBH, 4 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 7 K Jonathan Stiever (did not pitch, injured and will undergo lat surgery) Jimmy Lambert 4 IP, 4.50 ERA, 2 H, 1 BB, 7 K Kade McClure 4 1⁄3 IP, 10.38 ERA, 6 H, 2 BB, 4 K Jace Fry 3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 H, 2 BB, 4 K

I know, Mikie Mahtook did really well this week, again, and it may mean a lot for his career as he tries to stay a Quad-A player, but since he is not a prospect and is not a candidate to be on the Sox this season, let’s look at Romy González. Romy has turned himself into a a good utility player and looks like he could take Leury’s spot on the roster in 2022. Right now, he is mostly a shortstop, but that can easily change as he pretty much has had a different primary position each season. González might not be as good defensively as Leury, but in the minors he has shown he has a better bat. It has been a breakout year for the 2018 18th round pick, so much so that if there was a minor league season last year, maybe González already would be in Chicago instead of Danny Mendick? Maybe that is too simplistic with the roster crunch, but González has been so good that he could have forced the issue. Now, he just gets to Charlotte and has two homers in his first two games, with a 512 wRC+. A fun time for him and for Sox fans, as González is playing to make the 2022 team at this point.

MVP Ranks

Gavin Sheets (82.9) Jake Burger (64.7) Tim Beckham (44.1) Mikie Mahtook (38.3) Mike Wright Jr. (29.2) Marco Hernández (26.5) Yermín Mercedes (24.3) Micker Adolfo (20.0) Luis Robert (15.1) Adam Engel (12.1)

Cold Cat Ranks

Kodi Medeiros (-33.5) Reynaldo López (-32.7) Zach Remillard (-27.8) Matt Tomshaw (-25.5) Nate Nolan (-21.3) Ofriedy Gómez (-20.6) Jonathan Stiever (-19.9) Danny Dopico (-17.6) Connor Sadzeck (-16.8) Hunter Schryver (-16.7)

Birmingham Barons (51-44 - 2 1 2 GA)

MVP Yolbert Sánchez .435 BA, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K

Yoelqui Céspedes .360 BA, 3 XBH, 4 R, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 6 K, 1 SB Lenyn Sosa .208 BA, 2 XBH, 1 R, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 8 K Caleb Freeman 3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 H, 0 BB, 4 K

Another player, well really two, who have outside shots to be in Chicago at some point in 2022 are Yolbert Sánchez and Yoelqui Céspedes. Both are older players, at 24 and 23 respectively, but because of no baseball last season and immigration, they are not higher in the system. But both are doing very well this season.

For Sánchez, he was OK in Winton-Salem with a 100 wRC+, but he was supposed to be better. It seemed he needed a promotion to prove that! So far in Double-A, Sánchez has a 143 wRC+ with a much-improved batting average thanks to a 70-point increase in BABIP. Sánchez seems to be swinging a lot, and still making a lot of contact. His BB-rate has been cut in half, while the K-rate has dropped 3%. It is not quite Nick Madrigal levels but it is close. Sánchez could be a darkhorse middle infield bench player next season, but he will need to continue to hit as well as he is to leapfrog other players or potential free agents.

Céspedes might have an easier shot to be in Chicago next season, especially if he keeps this up in Birmingham. It’s just been seven games, but he has more extra-base hits than singles while hitting .360. This should come down, hopefully not crashing, but Céspedes has had a weird first seven games. He has not walked yet, and has a .474 BABIP. So while the BABIP will go down, the walks should go up and the power should go up, so he may stay near his 140 wRC+ even if his batting average falls due to the high BABIP.

MVP Ranks

Kade McClure (45.7) Jameson Fisher (29.8) Carlos Pérez (28.8) Yolbert Sánchez (28.8) Ti’quan Forbes (26.8) Micker Adolfo (20.3) Emilio Vargas (17.0) Yoelqui Céspedes (14.3) Ofriedy Gómez (10.5) Romy González (10.1)

Cold Cat Ranks

J.B. Olson (-46.4) Ian Dawkins (-44.4) Alec Hansen (-37.0) JJ Muno (-27.0) Peter Tago (-20.2) Luis Ledo (-19.8) Craig Dedelow (-15.3) Joel Booker (-10.3)

Winston-Salem Dash (35-60 - 31 1 2 GB)

MVP José Rodríguez .524 BA, 1 HR, 2 XBH, 3 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K

Luis Mieses .286 BA, 2 HR, 3 XBH, 4 R, 6 RBI, 0 BB, 6 K McKinley Moore 2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 2 H, 0 BB, 3 K

It really is beating a dead horse the amount we talk about José Rodríguez, but he continues to deserve it and is doing even better in High-A compared to Low-A — though it probably won’t continue at this pace. In 11 games so far, Rodríguez has a .429/.447/.595 slash line mostly because of a .485 BABIP. It will take more data to see just how much he is able to do against tougher pitching, but the positives right now are that the power output is still the same along with the walk rate. The bad is that Rodríguez is hitting more grounders and the K-rate is up. But again, it is 11 games, so just one week can change the entire outlook of Rodríguez’s High-A stats. Whatever happens, it is clear the middle infield for the Sox has had a few notable players do really well, and they are in the top three levels, one right behind the other.

MVP Ranks

Yolbert Sánchez (52.8) Taylor Varnell (41.7) Alex Destino (37.9) Yoelqui Céspedes (27.7) José Rodríguez (26.8) Luis Curbelo (26.0) Lenyn Sosa (22.2) Jason Bilous (19.6) Ian Dawkins (18.5) Johan Dominguez (18.1)

Cold Cat Ranks

Kaleb Roper (-48.5) Cooper Bradford (-40.9) Wilber Perez (-36.6) Edgar Navarro (-32.3) Ryan Williamson (-21.4) Duke Ellis (-19.3) Declan Cronin (-18.7) Sal Biasi (-14.7) Dan Metzdorf (-14.5) Bryce Bush (-12.2)

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (27-69 - 32 GB)

MVP Jesus Valles 6 IP, 0.00 ERA, 5 H, 0 BB, 4 K

James Beard: .273 BA, 1 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, 4 BB, 9 K Bryan Ramos .000 BA, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K Misael González .143 BA, 1 R, 1 RBI, R, 2 BB, 7 K, 1 SB DJ Gladney .091 BA, 1 BB, 6 K Chase Krogman .333 BA, 1 XBH, 3 RBI, 4 BB, 6 K Drew Dalquist 5 IP, 0.00 ERA, 2 H, 5 BB, 4 K Jared Kelley 1 IP, 9.00 ERA, 0 H, 3 BB, 1 K (left this start with injury) Matthew Thompson 4 IP, 6.75 ERA, 8 H, 2 BB, 5 K

MVP Ranks

José Rodríguez (104.7) Luis Mieses (65.3) Bryan Ramos (59.9) Harvin Mendoza (31.6) Misael González (17.4) Samil Polanco (15.4) Caberea Weaver (12.4) DJ Gladney (11.7)

Cold Cat Ranks

Tyson Messer (-30.9) Garvin Alston Jr. (-30.2) Marcus Evey (-30.2) Angel Acevedo (-28.2) Yoelvin Silven (-28.0) Hunter Speer (-22.5) Ty Madrigal (-19.6) Drew Dalquist (-18.9) Jared Kelley (-18.8) Lency Delgado (-17.0)

ACL White Sox (16-23 - 13 GB)

MVP Benyamin Bailey .364 BA, 1 HR, 4 R, 7 BB, 2 K

Wes Kath .278 BA, 1 HR, 2 R, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 4 K Colson Montgomery .176 BA, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K Tanner McDougal 2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0 H, 0 BB, 4 K Sean Burke 2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0 H, 1 BB, 4 K Cristian Mena 3 IP, 6.00 ERA, 4 H, 2 BB, 1 K

MVP Ranks Misael González (37.1) Wilfred Veras (18.2) Wes Kath (13.9) Homer Cruz (13.5) Wilber Sánchez (13.5) Anderson Comas (12.9) Rigo Fernández (11.7) Dilmer Mejía (11.7) Richard García (11.6) Tanner McDougal (11.2)

Cold Cat Ranks

Elijah Tatís (-43.2) Ronaldo Guzman (-32.6) Jacob Gilliland (-16.5) Anthony Espinoza (-15.0) Brandon Jenkins (-13.7) Cristian Mena (-12.8) Deivi Diaz (-11.2)

DSL White Sox (13-16 - 8 1 2 GB)

MVP Layant Tapia .375 BA, 1 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K, 2 SB

Victor Quezada .333 BA, 1 RBI, 4 BB, 1 K, 3 SB Manuel Guariman .375 BA, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K Norge Vera 1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 1 K

MVP Ranks

Randel Mondesi (23.8) Emerson Talavera (17.2) Cesar Jiménez (16.5) Guillermo Cuevas (14.8) Carlos Hinestroza (11.3)

Cold Cat Ranks

Arxy Hernández (-18.1) Oriel Castro (-15.9) Alberto Bernal (-15.2) Miguel Toribio (-13.1) Manuel Veloz (-10.9) Carlos Jiménez (-10.3) The Offense (-10.0)

White Sox Organizational All-Stars

Catcher Carlos Pérez, Birmingham Barons (28.8) First Base Gavin Sheets, Charlotte Knights (82.9) Second Base Yolbert Sánchez, Birmingham Barons (81.6) Third Base Jake Burger, Charlotte Knights (64.7) Shortstop José Rodríguez, Winston-Salem Dash (131.5) (**Player MVP**) Left Field Luis Mieses, Winston-Salem Dash (79.8) Center Field Misael González, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (54.5) Right Field Yoelqui Céspedes, Birmingham Barons (42.7) Designated Hitter Bryan Ramos, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (59.9)

Bench (SS/3B/1B) Tim Beckham, Charlotte Knights (44.1) Bench (RF) Micker Adolfo, Charlotte Knights (40.3) Bench (RF-LF) Alex Destino, Winston-Salem Dash (37.9) Bench (OF) Mikie Mahtook, Charlotte Knights (38.3) Bench (1B) Jameson Fisher, Birmingham Barons (29.8) Bench (1B-3B) Ti’quan Forbes, Charlotte Knights (29.3) Bench (1B) Harvin Mendoza, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (28.0) Bench (2B) Marco Hernández, Charlotte Knights (26.5) Bench (3B) Luis Curbelo, Winston-Salem Dash (26.0) Bench (2B) Jagger Rusconi, Winston-Salem Dash (25.2)

Left-Handed Starting Pitcher Taylor Varnell, Birmingham Barons (46.5) (**Pitcher MVP**) Right-Handed Starting Pitcher Kade McClure, Charlotte Knights (38.8) Right-Handed Starting Pitcher Mike Wright, Charlotte Knights (29.2) Right-Handed Starting Pitcher Jason Bilous, Birmingham Barons (19.6) Right-Handed Starting Pitcher Johan Dominguez, Birmingham Barons (18.1)

Right-Handed Relief Pitcher Emerson Talavera, DSL White Sox (17.2) Right-Handed Relief Pitcher Emilio Vargas, Birmingham Barons (17.0) Left-Handed Relief Pitcher Guillermo Cuevas, DSL White Sox (14.8) Right-Handed Relief Pitcher Homer Cruz, ACL White Sox (13.5) Right-Handed Relief Pitcher Carlos Hinestroza, DSL White Sox (11.3) Right-Handed Relief Pitcher Tanner McDougal, ACL White Sox (11.2)

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