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White Sox Minor League Update: July 16, 2021

Again, just one win in the system tonight, but Luis González and Deivy Grullón stay hot for Charlotte

By Year of the Hamster
Chicago Cubs v Chicago White Sox
Luis González is so hot, we had to choose a photo of him doing something close to nothing just to keep from burning this update up.
Norm Hall/Getty Images

Maybe Charlotte has found a legit catcher to send up to Chicago for some playing time. No, not Yermín Mercedes, who did triple tonight as DH; no, Deivy Grullón, who homered in his second straight game in Charlotte, and second straight game starting at catcher. (Yermín is either injured, figured out quickly how to call a game per La Russa, or has given up trying to learn how to play a game, because it seems he’s back to emergency catcher status.)

On a positive note, the Chicago White Sox Charlotte Knights lockdown pen of Jace Fry, Zack Burdi and Matt Foster combined to throw 3 1⁄3 innings of scoreless, one-hit, one-walk, five-K ball. Also, Luis González continues to hit as if he’s suddenly realized his White Sox career is now hanging in the balance; he’s been about the only good thing going in this Gwinnett series. Oh, and the arrival of backstop beast Grullón.

Poll

Charlotte lost on Friday, 5-3. Who was its MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 76%
    Luis González: 2-for-2, RBI, 2 BB, SB
    (57 votes)
  • 21%
    Deivy Grullón: 1-for-3, R, RBI, HR, BB, 3 LOB, GIDP
    (16 votes)
  • 2%
    Zack Burdi: IP, 2 K
    (2 votes)
75 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Charlotte lost on Friday, 5-3. Who was its Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 67%
    Aaron McRae: 5 2⁄3 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 2 HR, HB, LOSS
    (44 votes)
  • 30%
    Zach Remillard: 0-for-5, 2 K, 4 LOB
    (20 votes)
  • 1%
    Matt Reynolds: 0-for-3, BB, K, 4 LOB, GIDP
    (1 vote)
65 votes total Vote Now

This game was horrible, so let’s talk instead about the confusing circumstances under which it was played/reported. The Birmingham twitter feed reports things thusly:

With no mention of any game play tonight, it would be presumed that both the regular, continued game from Thursday night (suspended with one out in the top of the second) that was supposed to go nine innings was rained out, as was the regularly-scheduled Saturday night game, shortened to seven innings due to the spontaneous doubleheader.

Instead, there is this box score, of the continued game from Thursday, cut to seven innings (due to more rain? just because we’re making up rules as we go along in baseball now?), with the seven-inning game from tonight washed out. Did Birmingham just show up to work at the regular time and forgot about the earlier game continuation today? Again, no details at all on the feed.

Theoretically, esoterically, presumably, Saturday will boast two, seven-inning games. Tune in

No matter, though, this game started really well thanks to Konnor Pilkington, and ended horribly, thanks to, sorta, everyone else? Anyway, here’s the polls.

Poll

This bizarre mystery game was lost in Birmingham tonight, during the great Alabama flood. Who was the Barons MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 27%
    Konnor Pilkington: 1 1⁄3 innings, perfect, maybe didn’t even show up to the park tonight because it was wet, and ugly
    (11 votes)
  • 20%
    @BhamBarons, for declining to provide any details about the ugly five innings played in the continuation from Thursday
    (8 votes)
  • 45%
    Xavier Fernández: 2-for-3, R, HR, 3 RBI, K, 1-for-2 CS
    (18 votes)
  • 7%
    Joel Booker: 2-for-3, R, RBI, HR, K
    (3 votes)
40 votes total Vote Now

Poll

So they played a game, sorta, and lost in Birmingham tonight, during the great Alabama flood. Who was the Barons Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 2%
    Romy González: 0-for-4, 3 K, LOB
    (1 vote)
  • 18%
    Tyler Nelsony: 0-for-3, 3 K, LOB in just about the worst debut you can make in an organization
    (7 votes)
  • 2%
    JJ Muno: 0-for-3, K, E
    (1 vote)
  • 67%
    Blake Battenfield: 1 1⁄3 IP, 4 H, 5 R/3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, HR, LOSS
    (25 votes)
  • 8%
    Andrew Perez: IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 3 K, HR, HB
    (3 votes)
37 votes total Vote Now

May-June was pretty sweet for Dash starter Davis Martin, but June-July has been significantly more bitter. Come to think of it, ditto the Dash themselves, lingering around .500 at 20-20, and losing something like 20 of their past 25. (I say, “like,” because, like, I’m not looking it up, it’s 2 a.m. and there are six games to write, and are you really going to commit this ugly streak to memory?)

Martin was simply crushed on Friday by the Bowling Green Hot Rod Machine, 61 pitches to get four outs, and boy howdy, seven earned on his ticket before he left. At one time, Winston-Salem led, 2-0; the Dash also scored the first and last runs of the game.

In what is a familiar refrain for a White Sox system now WOEFULLY worse than .500, it’s not like the Dash didn’t hit tonight, in fact equalling the Rods’ 10 hits for the game. Executing with runners on base, well, that’s another thing. But Yolbert Sánchez remains hot (as the Dash have not), with a big game, and Duke Ellis has the skinniest legs in the game with a guy now boasting four homers on the season.

Poll

Goddang if the Dash didn’t get whupped on Friday, 11-4. Who was their MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 11%
    Ryan Williamson: 2 2⁄3 IP, 6 K
    (5 votes)
  • 88%
    Yolbert Sánchez: 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI, 2B, HR, LOB
    (37 votes)
  • 0%
    Luis Curbelo: 2-for-4, RBI, 2 2B, K, 2 LOB
    (0 votes)
42 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Goddang if the Dash didn’t get whupped on Friday, 11-4. Who was their Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 94%
    Davis Martin: 1 1⁄3 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, HR, LOSS
    (37 votes)
  • 5%
    Bailey Horn: 2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
    (2 votes)
  • 0%
    Brian Glowicki: IP, 2 H, 2 ER, K
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Alex Destino: 0-for-4, 2 K, 3 LOB, GIDP
    (0 votes)
39 votes total Vote Now

Is there some point where we’re supposed to be irritated, or concerned, with how bad the minors are? It feels like about two months’ worth of giggles should give way to a bit of frustration. I know, I know, minors don’t matter, W-L is silly, remind me again why you’re reading.

Or, put another way, it’s super cool that the White Sox have more first-rounders (and sure, let’s round Gavin Sheets up, too) on their major league roster than anyone else, that’s what it’s about, after all. But there will need to be a second wave at some point, presuming this current wave holds (it isn’t at catcher, or maybe in the pen, second base ... but that is a different update and polls, yeah?).

Anyway, Kannapolis lost again. Drew Dalquist got crushed, but hopefully, like, found a feel for his secondaries, or didn’t get hurt, or spared the pen, or something. Two more errors, in ... right field and first base. Sixteen total left on base, but at least the RISP numbers weren’t woeful, because ... only six guys got into scoring position all game.

Positives? The pen was pretty decent, following Dalquist. José Rodríguez had two more hits and has seemed to simmer down his own errors at shortstop. That’s about it. The CBs fall to a (presumably) season-worst 25 under .500.

Poll

Kannapolis lost. MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 54%
    José Rodríguez: 2-for-4
    (23 votes)
  • 9%
    Luis Mieses: 2-for-4, R, E
    (4 votes)
  • 21%
    Caberea Weaver: 1-for-2, 2 BB, LOB, SB
    (9 votes)
  • 14%
    Garvin Alston Jr.: 2 IP, H, BB, K
    (6 votes)
42 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Kannapolis lost. Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 97%
    Drew Dalquist: 3 2⁄3 IP, 6 H, 7 R/6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, HR, 2 WP, LOSS
    (39 votes)
  • 0%
    Marcus Evey: 1 1⁄3 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 BB, HR, WP
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Jordan Mikel: IP, H, ER, BB, K
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Chase Krogman: 1-for-4, RBI, 3 K, 3 LOB
    (0 votes)
  • 2%
    Brandon Bossard: 0-for-4, K, 3 LOB
    (1 vote)
40 votes total Vote Now

Huzzah, another win! Managed to avoid getting blanked once again tonight, though again came thisclose. Two wins on the year! Brett has to ask me back now.

Ronaldo Guzman had a weird start, but overall the ACL Sox pitching was on point. Benyamin Bailey bounced back from a rough game on Thursday. But boy, is Elijah Tatís having a helluva Stateside debut; seriously at this point he could find himself demoted to DSL. He is utterly lost this month.

Poll

Lucky for me, the ACL White Sox won, 3-2. Who was their MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 32%
    Wilber Sánchez: 2-for-4, R, K, 2 LOB, SB
    (12 votes)
  • 21%
    Benyamin Bailey: 1-for-3, 2 RBI, LOB
    (8 votes)
  • 2%
    Wilfred Veras: 0-for-1, R, 2 BB
    (1 vote)
  • 2%
    Jefferson Mendoza: 1-for-3, 2B, 2 K, 3 LOB, pickoff at 1B, 2-for-4 CS
    (1 vote)
  • 32%
    Homer Cruz: 3 IP, H, ER, BB, 4 K, WIN
    (12 votes)
  • 8%
    Corey Stone: IP, BB, 3 K, HOLD, E
    (3 votes)
37 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Lucky for me, the ACL White Sox won, 3-2. Who was unluckier, as their Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 90%
    Elijah Tatís: 0-for-3, R, 2 K, 3 LOB, 2 E
    (36 votes)
  • 7%
    Ronaldo Guzman: 2 IP, H, ER, 5 BB, 3 K
    (3 votes)
  • 2%
    Ramon Laureano: 0-for-3, K, 3 LOB
    (1 vote)
40 votes total Vote Now

Hard to get it done with two hits, even in a seven-inning game, none for extra bases. Again, like last night in the ACL, these LOB numbers seem to just be left from a previous game, not zeroed out by the DSL box score intern. C’mon MiLB. Three errors from the DSL, including one from both Ca. Jimenez and Ce. Jimenez, so there’s that.

Poll

Just two hits for the DSL White Sox on Friday. Was there an MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 32%
    Brian Carrion: 2 IP, K, pickoff at 1B
    (11 votes)
  • 8%
    Randel Mondesi: 1-for-3, 2 K, 2 LOB, SB, E
    (3 votes)
  • 58%
    The intern who mistakenly left 13 players on base for Chicago DSL, which appears to be mathematically impossible but gave me something to write about.
    (20 votes)
34 votes total Vote Now

Poll

How about the DSL Cold Cat? You made it this far, man, vote.

This poll is closed

  • 31%
    Arxy Hernandez: 0-for-3, 3 K, 2 LOB
    (6 votes)
  • 47%
    Carlos Jimenez: 0-for-3, 2 K, 2 LOB, E
    (9 votes)
  • 21%
    Oriel Castro: 2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, LOSS
    (4 votes)
  • 0%
    Yihemy Nolasco: 2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, K
    (0 votes)
19 votes total Vote Now

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