This week:
- There's a lot of talk about Carlos Quentin being traded and there are plenty of White Sox fans who are in favor of such a move. One cited reason is that Dayan Viciedo can be slotted into right field and the White Sox won't lose much. Seemingly overlooked in this analysis is that Viciedo is currently injured, bothered by the same thumb that he broke in spring training, and hasn't played since last Saturday. A week ago, trading Quentin and replacing him with Viciedo would have made more sense. Now, there's the issue of how Viciedo will play when he comes back - and even when he'll come back. Perhaps tellingly, Viciedo was not placed on the disabled list (which, in the minor leagues, is a 7-day DL), so the assumption appears to have been, at least initially, that he would be back relatively quickly. On the other hand, Viciedo's offensive performance was pretty poor immediately after his return from the broken thumb at the start of the season (April: .250/.280/.398) and also immediately prior to him being held out of game action (Post All-Star break: 9 G, .125/.282/.125). I wouldn't be counting on Viciedo to be able to acceptably replace Quentin.
- Notable re-assignments: RHP Addison Reed, UT Tyler Kuhn and RHP Brian Omogrosso promoted to Charlotte; RHP Zach Stewart assigned to Charlotte; RHP Anthony Carter demoted to Birmingham; CF Keenyn Walker promoted to Kannapolis; C Kevan Smith promoted to Great Falls.
- When Walker was promoted, one thing that interested me was which of Walker and Trayce Thompson would play center field for the Intimidators. At least last night, in Walker's first game, it was Thompson. Thompson, long thought to be destined for a corner, has impressed some with his play in center this season, as he's developed more of a feel for the position. For more on Thompson, check out this article.