TODAY: Vaughn has been activated from the COVID-IL. Sheets has been optioned back to Triple-A as the corresponding move.
JUNE 3: The White Sox announced they’re placing corner outfielder/first baseman Andrew Vaughn on the injured list. First baseman/corner outfielder Gavin Sheets has been recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to replace him on the active roster.
Vaughn’s IL placement is related to the coronavirus, although the club didn’t announce whether he has tested positive or merely been exposed to the virus. “In compliance with MLB’s existing COVID-19 protocols, Andrew Vaughn has been placed on the injured list,” executive vice president/general manager Rick Hahn announced. “Andrew is currently asymptomatic and our hope is that, similar to our other IL placements of this nature, he will return shortly to the active roster. At this time, no other players on the roster are impacted.”
The Sox decided to break camp with Vaughn after Eloy Jiménez went down with a torn pectoral in Spring Training. He got out of the gates slowly- not an unexpected development for a player who had previously topped out at the High-A level- but Vaughn found a bit of a groove at the plate by the tail end of April. Altogether, he’s put up a roughly league average .226/.316/.394 line with four home runs over his first 158 MLB plate appearances.
Vaughn’s absence will lead to Sheets’ first big league chance. The 25-year-old was the Sox second-round pick out of Wake Forest in 2017, and he’s been a productive offensive player all the way up the minor league ladder. During his last full minor league season in 2019, Sheets hit .267/.345/.414 in an extremely pitcher-friendly environment at Double-A Birmingham. He’s followed that up with a very good start to his Triple-A career this season, compiling a .319/.360/.500 mark over his first 100 plate appearances with Charlotte. Baseball America ranked Sheets as the White Sox #12 prospect entering the year, praising his raw power and lofty minor league exit velocities.
Nice to see that a positive COVID test no longer results in mass hysteria.
They’ll be here…..they’re just masking up before they comment.
Oh boy, here we go.
Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.
Yeah, because of vaccines and science. Not because “CoViD iS fAkE”
All Hail Science!
Wait?!! You’re confirming he actually has COVID?!!!!!!!!!!!#%^!!!?
Sheets 6′ 5″ 230 good luck big boy.
Silver lining – i’m glad to see Sheets get shot and I hope he is in lineup tonight.
@maximumvelocity
I was going to say the same thing. I would like to see Sheets stay up once Vaughn comes back, but I know that’s unlikely.
But who goes down, your future HOFer, the Yerminator?
The Yerminator won’t be here next year.
Where is he going?
To some team that needs a DH. Eloi will be the DH as soon as he’s healthy.
Opposing pitchers caught on to Yermin Mercedes. Eloy and Robert will be back sometime in August.
He was probably doing the always dangerous act of standing in a restaurant with his facial garment off rather than sitting in the a restaurant with his facial garment on. Thoughts and prayers.
If this wasn’t about human injury, it would almost be comical. I had covid back in February, my body has not reacted well since. Any parallel? Have we been poisoned?
Huh, it’s like the virus has long term affects! Who possibly could have thought?!?
Lamb will get the majority of Vaughn’s spot and rightfully so.
Agreed.
I can hear it now after a good day at the dish – “Gavin sheets on baseballs!”
I know Lamb has hit better lately (including a homer tonight), but he has not had an OPS over .700 for a full season since 2017. So in spite of what he has done in less than 50 at bats, he might not be a great bet to keep that up. But who knows, perhaps he is finding his 2017 groove and is truly better than he has been the past 3 years.
I hope they brought Sheets up because he will play while Vaughn is out, not to sit on the bench while Lamb takes Vaughn’s spot. Unless he will start they should leave him at Charlotte. I suspect he might be a better hitter than Eaton. While Vaughn has a bright future, he has a rather miserable .534 OPS vs righties. I don’t see how they can keep starting Vaughn against righties if he does not start to hit better against them. Not down on Vaughn, and he is crushing lefties, but they are in win-now mode and need better production against RHP’s as a team. Their best team on the field for 2021 might include starting to limit his starts against RHP’s a little bit at least, unless he shows some improvement. Seems a good bet that either Sheets or even Lamb will give them better results vs RHP’s, unless Vaughn shows improvement pretty soon.
Yeah that was really stupid on their part, they couldn’t give him at least one start with how many hitters we have that are slumping?
These short MLB stints are how minor league players know what to work on when they get sent back down, but of course you don’t learn anything if you ride the pine your entire time up. Typical dumb Sox nonsense.
White Sox option Gavin.
Team will not be sleeping well
As they will all know what it is like
To experience being
SHORT SHEETS !!!
Gavin. We hardly knew ye. It’s a shame they couldn’t give the kid a single AB.
This is along the lines of the hiring of La Russa… in the universe of stuff nobody can understand. They call up Sheets, choose not to start him or give him an at bat, and send him back down. What can he be thinking of that experience? With all the talent they have, there is just mind boggling stupidity with their decision making at times.
With both Yermin and Eaton looking lost at the plate recently it makes even less sense. But I’m used to the Sox making senseless moves at this point.
Only reason they called up Sheets was that Engel isn’t ready yet.
Spot on! We’re trying to Win Games! Sheets is not owed a start. Lamb is getting big hits fir not playing much.
Lamb has been hitting as of late, I’ll give you that. But giving starts to Eaton and a struggling Yermin both games Sheets was here, not even giving him an at bat or two as a pinch hitter for one of their weak hitters like Garcia? It didn’t make any sense to call him up if they were not planning to play him. That’s not really an arguable point.
He’s not owed a start; he earned one via his AAA play. Isn’t that why he got called up?
Another big hit for Lamb. This guy deserves to play over Sheets and Eaton!
On positive note, Engel in starting lineup today vs Tigers!