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White Sox Select Jonathan Stiever

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The White Sox are selecting the contract of right-hander Jonathan Stiever, per various reporters (including MLB.com’s Scott Merkin). Right-hander Alex McRae was optioned to the club’s alternate training site, while southpaw Carlos Rodón is being transferred to the 45-day injured list to open space on the 40-man roster.

Steiver will make his MLB debut this afternoon, getting the start against the Tigers. Chicago’s 2018 fifth-round pick, he’ll make quite a leap to the highest level after topping out in the High-A Carolina League last season. That’s not been uncommon in this year without minor-league play. The former Indiana University ace has been quite good in the low minors, putting up a 3.59 ERA with 193 strikeouts (10.0 K/9) against just 36 walks (1.9 BB/9) in 173 professional innings.

Along the way, he’s caught the attention of prospect followers. Keith Law of the Athletic placed Stiever fourth among Sox farmhands preseason, lauding his plus control and well-rounded repertoire. MLB Pipeline (6th), Baseball America (8th) and Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen (8th) all agree that Stiever is among Chicago’s top ten prospects.

Rodón’s IL transfer likely isn’t as ominous as it may initially sound. He was originally placed on the 10-day injured list back on August 4 with soreness in his throwing shoulder. He’d thus be eligible to return from this latest stint on September 18. Rodón is reportedly gearing up for a mound session tomorrow and hopes to return to the active roster this season.

White Sox Injury Updates

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The Chicago White Sox are right in the thick of a three-headed teeth-clenching battle for the AL Central division lead. Their 28-16 record – good for a .636 winning percentage – not only has them on pace for 103 wins over a full 162-game season, but it places them a game ahead of the Twins for the division crown with a 2 1/2 game cushion over the Indians.

When it became clear that Luis Robert would start the season with the big league club, expectations rose for the southsiders, but few expected them to make a run for the division lead. Robert, as the brightest star in a shimmering youth movement, has done his part to rise the club’s profile and competitive level with a triple slash of .260/.324/.526 with stellar and eye-catching defense in center.

But beyond the youth movement, Chicago has enjoyed relatively sound health this season from their core producers. Dallas Keuchel’s back issues have put a bit of a damper of that storyline, but he’s hoping to return to start Thursday’s game. Carlos Rodón, however, has been a perennial injured list denizen since making his big-league debut in 2015. The 27-year-old made it back to the bump for two rusty outings early this season before returning to the training room with shoulder soreness. Soreness in his back and ribcage area has kept him out further, but he’s nearing full health.

Rodón plans to throw off a mound as early as Monday in the hopes of returning to the active roster this season, per The Athletic’s James Fegan (via Twitter). This late in the season, especially after such a prolonged absence, means that Rodón is unlikely to reclaim a spot in the rotation. Lucas Giolito has his rotation spot on lock, and Keuchel will be right behind him if he can stay healthy. Dylan Cease, Dane Dunning, Gio Gonzalez, and Reynaldo Lopez are all auditioning to make the playoff rotation. There may be space for Rodón in the bullpen, however.

Manager Rick Renteria may soon have a couple more southpaws at his disposal. After establishing himself as one of the premier worm killers in the game last season, Aaron Bummer has made just 7 appearances this season – strong as they may be. Bummer holds a 1.23 ERA/1.55 FIP over 7 1/3 innings with an absurd 78.6% groundball percentage. It’s a small sample but Bummer also struck out 12 batters in that span, good for 14.73 K/9. Bummer has twice been placed on the injured list with a left biceps strain, but his recovery remains on track. If all continues as planned, Bummer should be able to join the team in time for their final road trip that takes them through the state of Ohio for series with the Reds and Indians, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (via Twitter).

White Sox Place Dallas Keuchel On Injured List

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The White Sox have placed lefty Dallas Keuchel on the 10-day injured list and recalled righty Reynaldo Lopez from their alternate training site in his place, per a team announcement. Keuchel is dealing with back spasms. His placement on the IL is retroactive to Sept. 7, so he could return in as little as a week. That appears to be the hope, as it was already known that Keuchel’s next start would be skipped because of this issue. Given that expectation, it’s not entirely surprising to see an IL stint to bring in a fresh arm.

Chicago’s three-year, $55.5MM investment in Keuchel has paid off in spades thus far. Prior to going on the injured list, the 32-year-old was in the midst of perhaps his best run since capturing the 2015 American League Cy Young Award. Through 53 1/3 frames this year, Keuchel has worked to a 2.19 ERA and 3.14 FIP with 5.4 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 0.34 HR/9 and a 56 percent ground-ball rate. He’s never managed to limit home runs at this rate, so there may be some regression coming on that front, but Keuchel still looks better than he’s been since that Cy Young win.

Lopez was only just optioned to the White Sox’ Schaumburg site last week. The former top prospect simply hasn’t performed well enough to be one of the team’s top rotation options over the past two seasons. Dating back to Opening Day 2019, Lopez carries a dismal 5.53 ERA and 5.18 FIP in 193 2/3 innings. He started four games for the Sox in 2020 before being optioned out, but he lasted only 9 2/3 innings overall. In that short time, he yielded 11 runs (nine earned) on 14 hits, eight walks and a hit batter with 10 strikeouts.

Lucas Giolito, Dylan Cease and Dane Dunning currently lead an impressive core of young ChiSox starters, and veteran Gio Gonzalez was just activated from the injured list earlier this week. Assuming Keuchel’s injury doesn’t worsen, he could return for the finale of a pivotal series against the division-rival Twins next Thursday. The Sox also play four games in Cleveland from Sept. 21-24, and if Keuchel is able to make it back for the finale against the Twins, he’d line up to start the second game of an equally important series against the Indians.

American League Injury Updates: Piscotty, Cobb, Keuchel, Pearson

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Here are the latest updates on a few injury situations from around the American League …

  • The Athletics will go a few days without full participation from outfielder Stephen Piscotty, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle covers on Twitter. (He’s pinch running as we speak.) Thankfully, it seems there’s reason to hope he’ll bounce back quickly after receiving a cortisone shot to his balky wrist. Piscotty has turned in a useful but hardly world-beating .264/.308/.438 batting line on the season.
  • Orioles righty Alex Cobb is days away from a return, with outfielder Austin Hays seemingly not far behind, as skipper Brandon Hyde tells reporters including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link). Cobb’s absence is as yet not fully explained; the quick turnaround could indicate that he had to step away owing to coronavirus protocols. Regardless, it’s good news that he’s expected to jump right back into active duty.
  • The White Sox don’t appear overly concerned with the health status of lefty Dallas Keuchel. He’ll plan to miss a start after taking an early exit from his last outing due to lower back issues, but that’s expected to be the extent of the missed time, as Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times and others mentioned on Twitter. Keuchel has thus far justified the South Siders’ faith in signing him, running up 53 1/3 innings of 2.19 ERA ball.
  • Exciting young Blue Jays hurler Nate Pearson is likely not going to build back to a full starter’s role, skipper Charlie Montoyo told reporters including MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm (Twitter links). That’s sensible for a variety of reasons. For one thing, there really isn’t much time to ramp him up. For another, it’s not clear that’d be the right role after Pearson ran into some early MLB struggles. The firmly contending Toronto outfit can certainly make use of Pearson in a relief role while still getting him valuable work at the game’s highest level.

White Sox Activate Gio Gonzalez

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The Chicago White Sox have activated Gio Gonzalez, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (via Twitter). Zack Burdi has been optioned to the team’s alternate site to make room on the roster.

Gonzalez has pitched both out of the bullpen and from the rotation this season. Given the injury concerns for the soon-to-be 35-year-old, Chicago could reason that the bullpen would be the prudent and more effective usage play for Gonzalez. Instead, they’re likely to put him back into their starting five for now alongside Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Dylan Cease, and Dane Dunning. Keuchel has been struggling with a balky back, so getting Gonzalez tuned up and back to his usual innings-eating self could be a benefit for the Pale Hose come playoff time.

The veteran southpaw has the battle scars to mark his playoff resume. He’s made 8 starts in his postseason career for the Nationals and Brewers with his team’s going an even 4-4 in those games. Batters have hit just .215/.346/.393 over those 29 1/3 innings, while Gonzalez has racked up 27 strikeouts and a 4.91 ERA. In sum, Gonzalez has suppressed batter contact and power throughout his playoff tenure, but also struggled at times with command leading to short starts and an average start length of less than 4 innings. Still, when the playoffs roll around, 4 solid innings from a time-tested veteran might be preferable to relying on the youth of Cease and/or Dunning. Now that the White Sox have all guaranteed a playoff berth, we have only time in the way of learning the White Sox’ postseason strategy.

The 25-year-old Burdi made 8 appearances this season, and while 13.5 K/9 to 3.7 BB/9 are sound peripheral numbers, Burdi was saddled with an 11.05 ERA across 7 1/3 innings. An 8.57 FIP only paints a marginally better picture for the hard-throwing right-hander. Things started out well-enough when Burdi allowed just 1 earned run over his first four outings, but 8 earned runs over his final 3 1/3 marred the earlier performance and likely played a role in his demotion. The Illinois-native suffered a particularly brutal 1/3 of an inning at the hands of the Royals, surrendering a solo shot, an RBI single, and then another long ball to Maikel Franco that plated three and ended Burdi’s evening. Despite the rough outings, Burdi boasts an electric 98 mph fastball and will find his way back to the majors.

Dallas Keuchel Leaves Start With Lower Back Stiffness

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White Sox starter Dallas Keuchel prematurely exited today’s game against the Royals with an apparent injury. The White Sox went on to announce (via The Athletic’s James Fegan on Twitter) that Keuchel is dealing with stiffness in his lower back and is currently considered day-to-day.

It’s good news that the preliminary evaluation of Keuchel doesn’t sound too severe, and we hope that Keuchel will get back on the mound with no IL stint and without missing a beat. The veteran lefty has been a solid addition to the suddenly-contending White Sox, as he’s contributed a 2.42 ERA through his first 8 starts.

This afternoon, he was at it again, allowing just two hits in five shutout innings for the Sox before unexpectedly leaving the game following his warm-up pitches. Averaging just 5.6 K/9 for the year, Keuchel is as uninterested in the strikeout as ever, but he’s excelled elsewhere, allowing fewer walks and home runs than in recent years. That’s given way to a 3.19 FIP, which would be the lowest mark Keuchel has posted in a season since his Cy Young Award-winning year in 2015.

The White Sox have already had fellow starters Carlos Rodon and Gio Gonzalez require IL stints this year, so it’s a relief that Keuchel is initially listed as only day-to-day. And while Rodon is said to be nearing a return, any more injuries would be a considerable test to Chicago’s depth. Should Keuchel need an IL stint, the recently-optioned Reynaldo Lopez could be forced back into Major League action.

White Sox Option Reynaldo Lopez

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The White Sox have optioned struggling right-hander Reynaldo Lopez to their alternate training site and recalled left-hander Bernardo Flores Jr., per a team announcement.

It’s a disappointing development for the 26-year-old Lopez but one the Sox clearly no longer felt they could avoid. Lopez was once regarded as one of baseball’s best overall prospects and was a key piece in the trade that sent Adam Eaton from Chicago to Washington, D.C. He’s been in the big leagues since his original promotion with the Sox back in Aug. 2017.

Lopez posted a solid 3.91 ERA through 188 2/3 frames with the Sox in 2018 — his first full Major League season. However, he did so with ugly peripheral metrics that painted him as a candidate for major regression, and that’s precisely what panned out. Dating back to Opening Day 2019, Lopez has a 5.53 ERA and 5.18 FIP in 193 2/3 innings for the South Siders. In 2020, he’s started four games but lasted only 9 2/3 innings overall. Along the way, he’s yielded 11 runs (nine earned) on 14 hits, eight walks and a hit batter with 10 strikeouts.

Were the Sox still in rebuild mode, perhaps they’d chalk this up to continued growing pains and keep trotting Lopez out against big league lineups. But the team’s drawn-out rebuilding process has reached its conclusion, and the White Sox are now squarely in win-now mode, making it harder to accept substandard outings like the one put together by Lopez yesterday. In a key match against the division-rival Twins, Lopez was unable to escape the second inning, allowing three runs on four hits and a pair of walks. He used 53 pitches to record his five outs.

Even when Lopez was considered a premier prospect, there were some scouts who felt his ultimate home would be in the bullpen. He’s worked closer to a true three-pitch mix in 2020 and, in his two most recent outings, thrown primarily fastballs and sliders. Given his ongoing struggles in the rotation, perhaps there will be some intrigue within the organization to see how Lopez would handle short-relief stints that allow him to ramp up his fastball velocity and focus on a two-pitch mix.

With Lopez out of the mix for at least the foreseeable future, it appears the Sox will roll with Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Dylan Cease and perhaps Dane Dunning as the top four in their rotation. Carlos Rodon was said over the weekend to be nearing a return, and the Sox also have veteran southpaw Gio Gonzalez on the mend from a groin strain.

Flores, recalled in place of Lopez, could be an option to start a game as well. He made 15 starts for Chicago’s Double-A affiliate last year, totaling 78 1/3 innings with a 3.33 ERA, 7.9 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and a 53.3 percent ground-ball rate. He’s yet to pitch in the big leagues, so whether his first appearance comes as a starter or out of the ’pen, that’ll mark his MLB debut. Flores isn’t considered one of the system’s elite prospects, but he ranks on the back half of the top 30 at MLB.com (19) and FanGraphs (27).

White Sox Outright Nicky Delmonico

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  • The White Sox have outrighted outfielder Nicky Delmonico, James Fegan of The Athletic reports. He’ll remain with the organization at the team’s alternate training site. Now 28 years old, Delmonico enjoyed a terrific 166-plate appearance debut with the White Sox in 2017, when he slashed .262/.373/.482 with nine home runs. Success in the majors has eluded Delmonico since then, though, as he has combined for a weak .210/.287/.346 line with nine HRs in 408 PA dating back to 2018. The White Sox designated him for assignment Aug. 28.
  • The Rangers have added infielder Davis Wendzel and outfielders Steele Walker and Bubba Thompson to their 60-man player pool, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweets. They’re headed to the Rangers’ alternate site. All three rank among the Rangers’ top 15 prospects at MLB.com, which places Wendzel 11th, Walker 12th and Thompson 15th. Wendzel’s only a year removed from going 41st overall in the 2019 draft, but a thumb injury limited him to 24 plate appearances between rookie and Low-A ball. Walker was a 2018 second-rounder of the White Sox who joined the Rangers in the two teams’ Nomar Mazara trade last winter. The Rangers used a first-rounder on Thompson in 2017, but the 22-year-old is coming off a rough 2019 in High-A, where he batted .178/.261/.312 in 228 trips to the plate.

Details On White Sox/Indians Talks About Mike Clevinger

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  • Also from Rosenthal, he shares some details on the talks between Indians and White Sox about a possible Mike Clevinger trade.  The idea of a Clevinger trade to an AL Central rival seemed surprising at the time, and one Chicago official feels “the Indians used the Sox as a stalking horse, never intending to trade him within the division.”  The White Sox also denied that right-hander Michael Kopech was offered to Tribe as part of the Clevinger negotiations.

AL Central Trade Deadline Recap

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With the deadline in the rearview mirror, we’ll look back at each AL Central team’s trade activity over the past month.

Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Indians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

Minnesota Twins

Show all

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