- The White Sox outrighted reliever Bruce Rondon to Triple-A on Friday, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. Rondon could have rejected the assignment in favor of free agency, but it seems he’ll report to Charlotte. The 27-year-old flamethrower has amassed 40 strikeouts in 29 2/3 major league innings this season, but he has also registered a hideous walk rate (8.19 per nine) and an even higher ERA (8.49). As a result, the Sox designated Rondon on Wednesday and no one took a chance on him via waivers.
White Sox Rumors
Micker Adolfo To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
- The White Sox received some more tough news on a promising young prospect, as the team announced to reporters this week that outfielder Micker Adolfo will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the remainder of the season (Twitter link via WGN’s Adam Hoge). The silver lining, if there’s any, is that the procedure comes with a quicker recovery time for position players than for pitchers, and Adolfo is expected to be recovered in eight to 10 months. That would put him on track to be back up to speed anywhere from early Spring Training to early May Adolfo, 21, had turned in a quality .283/.368/.466 slash with 11 homers but a more concerning 27.2 percent strikeout rate through 78 games against older competition in Class-A Advanced. Fangraphs ranked him ninth among ChiSox farmhands earlier this year, while he currently ranks 10th in their system over at MLB.com.
Miguel Gonzalez Undergoes Shoulder Surgery
White Sox right-hander Miguel Gonzalez underwent right shoulder surgery and will require a recovery period of nine to 12 months, the team announced tonight. Per the announcement, doctors “performed a labral repair and debridement” on Gonzalez.
It’s a tough blow for the 34-year-old Gonzalez, who made just three starts and totaled just 12 1/3 innings in what is now an injury-ruined season. He’d performed nicely with the Sox in 45 starts from 2016-17, pitching to a 4.02 ERA with 6.0 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 in 268 2/3 innings before being traded over to the Rangers at the end of August. Gonzalez’s time with Texas didn’t go well, and he ultimately returned to the ChiSox on a one-year pact this offseason.
Gonzalez now, in a best-case scenario, wouldn’t be ready until mid-April of 2019, though the operation could effectively wipe out the first half of the 2019 season for the veteran right-hander as well. He’ll likely generate some minor league offers if not over the winter than early in the ’19 season as teams look to add veteran depth options to their organizations. In 883 2/3 innings between the O’s, White Sox and Rangers, Gonzalez has a 4.06 ERA with 6.3 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9.
White Sox Designate Bruce Rondon, Select Jeanmar Gomez
The White Sox have designated right-hander Bruce Rondon for assignment, per a club announcement. Replacing him on the roster will be fellow righty reliever Jeanmar Gomez, whose contract was selected.
Rondon, 27, was in his first season with the Sox after previously spending the entirety of his pro career in the Tigers organization. Rondon enjoyed a fairly promising start in his new environs, working to a solid 3.68 ERA with 31 strikeouts against 12 walks through his first 22 innings with the Pale Hose. But things derailed quickly for Rondon, as he was hammered for a stunning 19 earned runs over his next 7 2/3 innings — including another three-run meltdown in Tuesday night’s bludgeoning by the Cardinals. In the end, Rondon’s ERA with the White Sox will be a dismal 8.49. He’s out of minor league options, so the Sox don’t have the luxury of sending him to Triple-A to sort things out without first exposing him to waivers.
Rondon still throws plenty hard, averaging 96.4 mph on his heater, and he clearly has little trouble when it comes to missing bats; he punched out 40 hitters in 29 2/3 innings of work and notched a quality 14 percent swinging-strike rate. As has typically been the case for Rondon, though, he showed a significant lack of control in his time with the Sox, walking 27 batters, hitting another and throwing six wild pitches.
The Sox will have a week to either trade Rondon, run him through outright waivers or release him. It’s possible that another organization will be intrigued by his velocity and ability to miss bats, but they’d have to allow him to try to sort things out at the big league level due to that lack of minor league options. If Rondon does clear waivers, he has enough big league service time to reject a outright assignment and seek a new opportunity with another organization.
As for Gomez, 30, this will be his first shot at the majors since he fell out of fortune last year with the Phillies. He had turned in a few solid seasons, even becoming the Phils’ closer for a stretch, but was knocked around in 2017. Though he carried a career-high 8.5 K/9 in his 22 1/3 innings, Gomez was tagged for 31 hits (seven of which left the yard) and 18 earned runs prior to being cut loose.
Gomez spent a bit of time in the upper minors last year, throwing well but failing to make his way back up. He landed with the White Sox on a minors deal over the winter and has performed admirably thus far at Triple-A. Through forty frames over thirty appearances with Charlotte, Gomez owns a 2.02 ERA with 7.9 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9. If he can show well over the next few weeks, perhaps it’s not out of the question that he could turn into something of a trade candidate. If not, he may simply help the rebuilding White Sox fill innings down the stretch.
White Sox Place Avisail Garcia On 10-Day DL
The White Sox announced today that outfielder Avisail Garcia is headed back to the 10-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring. That’s the same essential injury that forced him out of action for much of the first half of the season.
To take the open spot on the active roster, the Chicago organization has promoted Ryan LaMarre. The outfielder was acquired recently in a waiver claim from the division-rival Twins, who had designated him for assignment.
The news is rather disappointing for Garcia, who had been on fire at the plate since being activated. In 17 games since his return to the roster in late June, he carried a .333/.347/.783 slash with eight home runs. Though that stretch also included just two walks to go with 17 strikeouts, Garcia showed last year that he can be quite productive even when carrying a marginal walk rate.
It now seems reasonable to presume that Garcia won’t really factor in this summer’s trade deadline build-up. Questions about the sustainability of his hitting, poorly graded glovework, and nagging hamstring problems already posed questions. Now, though the team hasn’t ruled out a return before the end of the month, it’s especially hard to imagine a trade coming together.
Garcia is earning $6.7MM this year and remains eligible for one more season of arbitration, which obviously reduces any urgency to work out a trade this summer. Certainly, the rebuilding South Siders could try to deal him next winter or instead decide to pursue an extension. Garcia, after all, is just 27 years old. Of course, his age, earnings to date, and proximity to free agency also leave him with a fair bit of leverage. There has been no clear indication to date whether a long-term deal is a serious consideration for the club.
White Sox Claim Ryan LaMarre
The White Sox announced that they’ve claimed outfielder Ryan LaMarre off waivers from the Twins. LaMarre was designated for assignment by Minnesota last week when Jorge Polanco was reinstated from his suspension. The ChiSox already had two open spots on the 40-man roster, so a corresponding move isn’t required. The White Sox didn’t announce that LaMarre is going to Triple-A (though he does have minor league options remaining), so it seems he’ll join their active roster.
LaMarre, 30, batted .263/.321/.313 through 109 plate appearances as a Twin before his DFA, logging plenty of time in center field with Byron Buxton struggling to stay healthy in 2018. Though his average and OBP were respectable, LaMarre also struck out in 30.3 percent clip of his big league plate appearances. He’s capable of playing any of the three outfield positions for the Sox and can be optioned back and forth between Charlotte and Chicago as a depth piece for the remainder of the season if the Sox hang onto him.
Astros Have Shown Interest In Jose Abreu
The Astros have shown interest in White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Abreu carries a stronger track record than Houston first baseman Yuli Gurriel and designated hitter Evan Gattis, either of whom could lose playing time to Abreu if the reigning world champs acquire him. However, in 2018, both Gurriel and Gattis have offered superior production to Abreu, a fellow right-handed hitter who has batted a disappointing .260/.316/.451 through 373 plate appearances. The 31-year-old Abreu also carries a high price tag, as he’s on a $13MM salary this season and should land a raise over that figure next winter during his final trip through arbitration. But despite the veteran’s cost and the fact that the White Sox are rebuilding, they have thus far been unwilling to move Abreu, an important mentor to their array of young players.
White Sox Grant Donn Roach His Release To Pursue Opportunity In Japan
Right-hander Donn Roach has been granted his release by the White Sox in order to pursue an opportunity in Japan, the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte announced. The move comes after Roach was named the club’s minor league pitcher of the month for June and after he’d been selected to the International League All-Star team.
There’s no official word as to which club will be signing Roach, though multiple reports out of Japan have suggested that the Orix Buffaloes have been showing interest in the 28-year-old right-hander. Roach becomes the second player to be released from a Triple-A club in order to pursue a job in Japan, joining now-former Mariners lefty Ariel Miranda.
Roach hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2016 with Seattle and has just a 5.77 ERA with 20 strikeouts and 18 walks in 39 innings as a big leaguer. But he’s notched a much better 3.68 ERA in 453 innings at the Triple-A level, albeit with a pedestrian 4.8 K/9 mark against 2.2 BB/9. Roach also spent the 2017 season pitching for the KT Wiz of the Korea Baseball Organization, posting a 4.69 ERA through 165 innings of work.
That led Roach to the White Sox organization, where he’s turned in a terrific season to date. Through 95 innings, he’s logged a 2.65 ERA with 5.8 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 0.28 HR/9 and a 56 percent ground-ball rate, with all but one of his 16 appearances coming out of the rotation. While the ChiSox aren’t exactly enjoying quality results from their rotation in the Majors, it also seems unlikely that Roach would’ve been a long-term answer for them at the big league level — especially given his lack of missed bats. This arrangement will allow Roach to earn more than he’d been earning in the States (and possibly set him up for a raise in a second season in Japan) while providing the Sox with some financial compensation for granting Roach his release.
Patience Required For The White Sox Rebuild
- Since the White Sox heavily bolstered their prospect ranks in the Chris Sale, Jose Quintana, and Adam Eaton trades, the team now faces the potentially lengthy and sometimes-frustrating wait to see this young talent develop at the Major League level. The Sox haven’t shown much this season, and as executive VP Ken Williams tells Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, “We’re probably ahead of where we have a right to believe we’re supposed to be, but we’re right where we want to be, but not quite where we need to be yet.” Both Williams and Carlos Rodon stressed the importance of the young team learning how to win and not getting used to losing, though obviously the organization is in for more growing pains during the rebuild process.
White Sox To Sign Nick Madrigal
TUESDAY: Madrigal receives the full slot of $6,411,400, Heyman tweets.
SUNDAY: The White Sox will sign the fourth pick in this year’s draft, Oregon State infielder Nick Madrigal, Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets. The exact terms of his deal aren’t yet known, but the selection carries a slot value of just over $6.4MM.
Madrigal is coming off a championship-winning season at OSU, where he overcame a wrist injury to slash an eye-popping .367/.428/.511 in 180 at-bats this year. Thanks in part to his outstanding showing in 2018, Madrigal ranked among the top five prospects entering this year’s draft, according to FanGraphs (No. 2), Baseball America (No. 3) and MLB.com (No. 3), while ESPN’s Keith Law placed him at No. 11.
At 5-foot-7, 165 pounds, Madrigal is diminutive, but prospect experts have high hopes for his offense translating to the majors. BA, for example, contends that he “possesses arguably the best hit tool” in this year’s draft class, and adds that he could emerge as a legitimate stolen base threat in the majors. It’s not yet clear, however, whether Madrigal will line up at second base or shortstop in the pros. He has experience at both positions, but he manned the keystone in 2018 at OSU, which had fellow high draft pick Cayden Grenier (No. 37, Orioles) at short.
