White Sox sign OF Slade Heathcott to minor league deal

To strengthen the White Sox OF depth, the Sox have signed former Yankee’s 2009 first-rounder Slade Heathcott to a minor league deal. He’s been assigned to Charlotte and placed on the 7-day DL.

Time on the DL isn’t necessarily unusual for Heathcott. When writing about Heathcott’s call-up to the Yankees last May, Chris Mitchell noted that Heathcott's had spent roughly 2.25 of his first 5 years on the DL. Despite that, Mitchell still liked Heathcott.

Despite this melange of injuries, Heathcott has performed well when he’s managed to stay on the field. He’s hit .275/.352/.409 in 364 games as a pro, which works out to a 115 wRC+. In addition to his exploits at the dish, he also provides excellent defense in center.

Unfortunately, Heathcott went on the DL six games after getting called up. He was called up again in September with limited playing time. He went back to AAA to start this season, but hit the DL yet again on May 10. The Yankees decided to cut bait and cut Heathcott on May 26.

Heathcott is the fifth 2009 first rounder to join the White Sox organization. Although the Sox first pick in 2009, Jared Mitchell, has never reached the majors, Heathcott, Matt Purke, Matt Davidson, and Josh Phegley have all reached the majors.