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White Sox Release Michael Saunders

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The White Sox have released outfielder Michael Saunders, per an announcement from their top affiliate. Top prospect Eloy Jimenez was promoted to Triple-A Charlotte, among other roster moves.

Saunders, 31, has struggled to gain traction this year after a miserable 2017 season. Through 51 plate appearances in the White Sox organization, he managed only a .152/.235/.239 slash, which was only marginally worse than he slashed earlier this year for the Orioles’ top affiliate.

At this point, Saunders is going to have a tough time finding extended opportunities at the highest level of the minors. But he’s still not far removed from a strong 2016 MLB campaign, so surely some team will pick him up.

Fans of the South Siders will take greater notice of the Jimenez promotion, though perhaps they’d prefer to see him moving all the way onto the MLB roster. The 21-year-old had already reached the Double-A level last year, and has mashed there again in 2018 to the tune of a .317/.368/.556 slash with ten home runs in 228 trips to the plate.

Jimenez, of course, is widely considered one of the game’s very best prospects. While we’re reaching the point in the season when contractual considerations no longer pose as significant a barrier to a promotion — with only 102 service-eligible days left in the season, there’s no worry of setting up Super Two status  — the Chicago organization is still taking things relatively slowly with Jimenez.

White Sox Outright Gregory Infante

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The White Sox have outrighted right-handed reliever Gregory Infante, per a club announcement. It seems he’ll remain at Triple-A after clearing waivers.

Infante, 30, gave the South Siders 54 2/3 innings of 3.13 ERA pitching, with 8.1 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9, in 2017. That was rather unexpected, given that six seasons had elapsed between his first, brief stint in the majors and his return last year.

Unfortunately, that nice story has not continued into the current campaign. Infante was knocked around in nine MLB innings before being optioned to Charlotte, where he surrendered 14 earned runs in his 18 innings of action.

AL Central Notes: Sano, Miggy, Castellanos, Covey

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The Twins’ demotion of Miguel Sano to the minors yesterday came as a surprise to many, but the slugger seems to be taking the move in stride, as Brian Murphy of the St. Paul Pioneer Press writes. “It’s the decision they take and I take too,” said Sano of the demotion. “I’m not mad. They gave me an opportunity. No reason I can get mad. … I’m going to take pride of going down there and working hard so I can come back and be better.” Sano said he didn’t want to blame his struggles on his recent injury history, though it’s worth noting that he required offseason surgery to repair a stress reaction in his shin and has also missed time in 2018 due to a hamstring injury. Chief baseball officer Derek Falvey said that improving Sano’s conditioning, specifically in his lower half, is part of the move, though the organization’s greater hope is to try to give Sano a fresh start in an environment where he can focus in on some areas for improvement identified by hitting coach James Rowson and others.

Here’s more from the AL Central…

  • The Tigers have no plans to move Nicholas Castellanos in the wake of Miguel Cabrera’s season-ending injury, manager Ron Gardenhire told reporters this week (Twitter link via Jason Beck of MLB.com). Castellanos ranks among the game’s worst defenders in the outfield according to each of Defensive Runs Saved (-11), Ultimate Zone Rating (-2) and Statcast’s Outs Above Average (-10). However, the Tigers organization remains committed to improving Castellanos’ work in right, it seems. “Castellanos is our right fielder,” Gardenhire said. “We’re trying to make him a right fielder and he’s still working at it, and he’s working really hard.”
  • Looking further at Cabrera’s injury, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports that the future Hall of Famer is expected to be able to return to baseball activities in about six months, which should leave him with ample time to prepare for Spring Training. He’ll begin his rehab work in Detroit, rather than at the team’s spring complex in Florida, which will allow him to be closer to his teammates. Cabrera is taking the injury as well as can be expected, Tigers trainer Doug Teter tells Woodbery. In a second column, however, Woodbery writes that the organization and its fans may need to concede that their former iron man, who averaged 155 games per season and made 11 All-Star teams from 2004-16, is beginning to break down and enter a decline over the final few years of his career. There’s no escaping his albatross contract, though Woodbery rightly notes that it’s also not likely to serve as a major hindrance to the club anytime soon. The Tigers are well south of the luxury tax, and given their rebuilding status, they’re not likely to spend aggressively in the next couple of winters anyhow.
  • Right-hander Dylan Covey has emerged as a surprise contributor in the rotation for the White Sox just months after clearing waivers and being outrighted, writes James Fegan of The Athletic (subscription required). Covey has had unsustainable good fortune in terms of home runs, as he’s yet to allow one this season after being perhaps the most homer-prone pitcher in the Majors last season. But he’s also working with an improved ground-ball rate, better control and more strikeouts as he’s significantly upped the usage of his two-seamer to great effect. Covey has only made six starts at the big league level thus far, but he’s impressed to the point that he’ll be afforded a long leash in proving that he is capable of holding down a long-term spot in the rotation. Considering the fact that the ChiSox acquired Covey in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft (out of the Athletics organization), even if he settles in as a useful back-of-the-rotation starter it’d be a nice bonus.

White Sox Place Nate Jones On 10-Day DL

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The White Sox have announced that righty Nate Jones is going on the 10-day DL with a pronator muscle strain. Fellow righty Juan Minaya has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.

While a timeline isn’t yet known, this injury does not bode well for Jones’s potential trade status this summer. Elbow problems limited the 32-year-old to 11 appearances last year and have perhaps contributed to his struggles thus far in 2018.

It had seemed that Jones may be a target for contenders, particularly given that he has been generating swinging strikes at about at 14% clip again in the early going. He had recorded 27 strikeouts but also 14 walks in his 24 2/3 innings this year. Though he is throwing about as hard as ever, averaging just under 98 mph with his fastball, Jones was also throwing first-pitch strikes at a lower rate than ever before (54.5%).

That mixed bag did not prevent Jones from earning mention along with some other controllable, high-K relief arms in our recent ranking of the top fifty trade deadline chips. With relatively few appealing rental arms likely to be available, it stands to reason that some contenders will go looking at bullpen pieces that can be kept for future seasons.

In Jones’s case, a few weeks of success could still turn him into an intriguing asset. He has been dominant in the past, is throwing hard and getting whiffs now, and comes with a great contract situation. His deal includes cheap club options for the next three years to come — the league minimum next year and just $8MM total for the ensuing two campaigns, with an alternative, one-time buyout price of only $1.25MM. (Escalators could boost those values, but only if Jones is healthy and pitching well enough to finish games.)

A potentially analogous situation arose last year with Sean Doolittle. Though he never showed the walk issues that Jones has, Doolittle did have a similar combination of an impressive track record and concerning injury history. While he had missed time in 2017, Doolittle was healthy at the trade deadline and ended up being dealt. In his case, he returned in mid-June, so Jones will have less time to reestablish himself — if he’s able to make it back before the end of July at all. The odds of that coming to pass still aren’t clear. Long-term health will remain the priority, in any event, particularly since the White Sox still have a lengthy term over which to achieve value on the contract.

Mets Claim Chris Beck

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The Mets have claimed righty Chris Beck off waivers from the White Sox, per club announcements. The 27-year-old had been designated for assignment by the Chicago organization.

Beck came up as a starter but has mostly worked in a relief role in recent years. He has 119 2/3 MLB innings under his belt, with a cumulative 5.94 ERA and 6.1 K/9 against 5.0 BB/9. The results have improved so far in 2018, as Beck owns a 4.18 ERA in 23 2/3 frames. Frankly, the peripherals don’t really indicate that he has made any strides, though Beck is working at a career-high 95.8 mph with his average fastball.

Perhaps the Mets feel they can unlock something from the former second-rounder. Of course, the club also may simply feel Beck will help improve the team’s depth situation as several hurlers filter back from the DL.

White Sox Release T.J. House

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The White Sox have released lefty T.J. House, per a club announcement. He had been playing with the organization’s top affiliate on a minor-league deal.

House, 28, had a very promising debut showing back in 2014, when he sported big groundball numbers and spun 102 innings of 3.35 ERA ball. But House ran into shoulder problems in the ensuing campaign and hasn’t really shown the same form since.

For most of the 2016 and 2017 seasons, House produced palatable earned run averages with middling peripherals at the Triple-A level, with brief MLB interludes. Last year, with the Blue Jays, he posted a 4.32 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 over 133 1/3 innings at the highest level of the minors.

Upon joining the White Sox, it seemed House would have a reasonable chance at elbowing onto the major-league staff. His efforts through 39 2/3 innings in nine starts at Triple-A, however, have not been terribly encouraging. House owns a 6.81 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9, though he has no doubt been unfortunate to strand only 42.9% of the baserunners to reach against him.

AL Central Notes: Zimmermann, Mauer, Royals, Giolito

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There was some (exceedingly mild) AL Central intrigue this morning, as reliever Matt Belisle bounced from the Indians over to the Twins, but otherwise it has been a quiet news day. Let’s take a look in at the latest items out of the AL Central:

  • Tigers starter Jordan Zimmermann says he’s ready to return to the majors after his latest minor-league start, as Peter Wallner of MLive.com reports. Zimmermann has been out for just over a month with a shoulder impingement, but he says he “feel[s] strong” and has now worked up to 89 pitches in his third rehab outing. As we noted upon his DL placement, Zimmermann has continued to post mediocre results but had at least boasted much/improved strikeout and walk numbers (9.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9). The Tigers are still milling around in an uninspiring AL Central race, though the odds of true contention this year remain long. Zimmermann’s hefty salary commitment and full no-trade protection — it converts to partial protection after the season — make him a difficult trade candidate, though a swap at some point can’t be ruled out entirely.
  • Twins first baseman Joe Mauer is just launching his own rehab assignment, MLB.com’s Jarrid Denney reports. Concussion-like symptoms have kept the 35-year-old out for the past several weeks. He has dealt with similar problems in the past, of course, which represents a major reason that he no longer plays behind the plate. Though he has not contributed enough on-field value to justify his lofty salary in quite some time, Mauer has been a productive hitter over the past two years. Thus far in 2018, he is slashing .283/.404/.355 with 28 walks against 22 strikeouts but just one home run through 167 plate appearances. Meanwhile, young outfielder Byron Buxton is going through some running and baseball activities, but still evidently remains some ways away from returning from a fractured toe.
  • Giving up lefty Sean Manaea helped the Royals win a World Series, but his rise in Oakland has surely left some K.C. fans wondering what might have been. As Rustin Dodd of The Athletic writes in a subscription piece, though, GM Dayton Moore has no regrets whatsoever about how things turned out. He explains how it was that the club sent Manaea to the A’s for utility star Ben Zobrist, saying that “Billy Beane was persistent” while the Royals “weren’t going to be outbid” for a key asset after coming up just shy the season prior. Now, though, Moore says the goal is to create a broad-based array of talent that will allow the organization to “compete for a long time,” hopefully without pursuing such drastic, win-now swaps.
  • Meanwhile, Lucas Giolito continues to fall shy of expectations for the White Sox. Through a dozen starts this year, including his latest yesterday evening, he carries a 7.08 ERA with just 31 strikeouts to go with 39 walks and a league-leading ten hit batters. As Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune writes, Giolito is getting plenty of leash with the rebuilding South Siders, though it’s tough to know whether or not that’s for the best given just how much he has struggled. There’s still some hope that the former top prospect will develop into a quality big league starter, writes Greenstein, and Giolito is only due to reach his 24th birthday this summer. Still, it’s fair to wonder just how long the club will keep trotting him out if things don’t improve. Skipper Rick Renteria says there haven’t been any recent discussions about sending Giolito down, though he did hint that the club has contemplated the possibility in the past.

White Sox Release Robbie Ross

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The White Sox have released left-handed reliever Robbie Ross, according to an announcement from their Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte (h/t: James Fegan of The Athletic).

The 28-year-old Ross joined the White Sox on a minor league deal in March, which came after he saw MLB action with the Rangers (2012-14) and Red Sox (2015-17) over the previous six seasons. Ross had some success during that span, particularly during the 2012, ’13 and ’15 campaigns, and combined for a 3.92 ERA with 7.46 K/9, 3.27 BB/9 and a 52.2 percent groundball rate in 330 2/3 innings. He didn’t show a significant platoon split, either, as he held same-handed hitters to a .250/.331/.381 line and righty-swingers to a .269/.344/.376 mark.

Injuries, including elbow and back problems, limited Ross to nine major league frames a year ago. In his return to the mound this season, he struggled in Charlotte, where he logged an 11.81 ERA with 9.28 K/9 and 14.34 BB/9 in 10 2/3 innings.

White Sox Activate Carlos Rodon, Designate Chris Beck

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The White Sox have activated left-hander Carlos Rodon from the 60-day disabled list and designated righty Chris Beck for assignment, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times was among those to report.

The 25-year-old Rodon will make his season debut against the Red Sox on Saturday after missing the first couple months of 2018 while working back from arthroscopic left shoulder surgery. Rodon underwent the procedure last September to repair a “significant” case of bursitis that helped limit him to 69 1/3 innings. However, he looked strong during his four-start rehab assignment, including three outings with Triple-A Charlotte, where he pitched to a 1.42 ERA with 22 strikeouts against five walks in 12 2/3 innings.

Rodon hasn’t been nearly that dominant during his major league career, but he has emerged as a solid starter since going third in the 2014 draft. Overall, Rodon has recorded a 3.95 ERA, 9.22 K/9, 3.76 BB/9 and a 45.1 percent groundball rate across 373 2/3 innings. He’s currently making a $2.3MM salary in the first of four potential arbitration-eligible seasons.

Beck, 27, has been a member of the White Sox since they selected him in the second round of the 2012 draft. He debuted in the majors in 2015, the same year as Rodon, but hasn’t been nearly as successful as his teammate. Beck has registered a 5.94 ERA with 6.09 K/9, 4.96 BB/9 and a 42.1 percent grounder rate in 119 2/3 innings (97 appearances, one start). He opened 2018 with 23 2/3 innings of 4.18 ERA ball and 6.08 K/9 against 4.18 BB/9 prior to his designation.

White Sox Purchase Contract Of Xavier Cedeno

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The White Sox announced today that they have purchased the contract of veteran lefty Xavier Cedeno. He’ll take the roster spot vacated by southpaw Aaron Bummer, who was optioned down.

Cedeno, 31, appeared only briefly in the majors last year with the Rays. He has thrown 142 1/3 innings over parts of seven campaigns in the big leagues. He carries a lifetime 3.98 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 at the game’s highest level, where he has held opposing lefties to a .226/.286/.299 cumulative slash but been battered by right-handed hitters (.844 OPS).

Since joining the Chicago organization on a minors deal, Cedeno has turned in impressive numbers at Triple-A. Through 21 2/3 innings, he has allowed just three earned runs on a dozen hits while recording 25 strikeouts against only four walks.

Bummer’s performance to date has been rather uplifting, making his demotion a bit of a surprise, though perhaps an opt-out clause in Cedeno’s contract forced the team’s hand. Over 19 1/3 frames on the year, Bummer owns a 3.26 ERA with 9.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 as well as a sturdy 60.3% groundball rate. That’s a vast improvement on his walk-marred debut effort last year and is all the more impressive given that opposing hitters have benefited from a lofty .429 BABIP.

The South Siders had an open 40-man roster spot available, though it seemed that had been cleared to make way for Carlos Rodon. When the team activates Rodon from the 60-day DL this weekend, then, it’ll need to create another opening.

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