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This Week in White Sox Minor League Baseball

Tyler Saladino
Tyler Saladino

This week:

  • INF Tyler Saladino has had a rather odd season, culminating with a promotion to Charlotte. Prior to this season, the 2010 7th rounder was 12 for 23 in stolen bases for his career. This season, he became the stolen base threat he was in college, successful on 36 of 43 attempts for Birmingham. Prior to this season, he had shown decent to good plate discipline and decent to good power (with a spike last year in a hitter friendly environment). This season, his walk rate shot up to 16.7% for the Barons and his power basically disappeared. In all, the .255/.391/.354 line he produced in Double-A was difficult to assess, even keeping in mind that his home ballpark suppresses offense. How he reacts to the higher level (and a better offensive environment in the International League) is going to be closely watched this month, as one suspects that the White Sox have it in mind to bring him up in September to bolster their now thin infield bench.
  • CF Keenyn Walker and SS Marcus Semien, who were both injured last week, spent just the minimum on the disabled list and were back in the lineup for Winston-Salem last night. With Saladino vacating an infield spot in Birmingham, Semien and his .270/.350/.470 line should be in line for a call-up to the Barons. He would be the first 2011 draft pick to reach that level.
  • 1B Keon Barnum also finally returned after missing more than a month with a shoulder injury, which interrupted a hot start to his pro career with Bristol.
  • RHP Thomas Royse continues to be injury-bitten. He returned to Great Falls after missing all of 2011 following Tommy John surgery. After making 5 starts, the 2010 3rd round pick is back on the disabled list, injury unknown.
  • After all the speculation on who the PTBNL in the Brett Myers deal was, it ended up just being the most obvious situation: the player the Astros wanted simply wasn't eligible to be traded yet because it had not yet been a year since he signed. RHP Chris Devenski, a 25th round pick in 2011, was the player named. Contrary to some speculation, as his draft position indicates, he really isn't anything more than organizational depth for Houston.
  • OF Courtney Hawkins: .272/.310/.410.