The White Sox farm system had a little bit of everything on July 2: a blown lead in Charlotte, a late walk-off in Winston-Salem, a runaway win in Kannapolis, and a pair of clean pitching performances in the complex leagues.
Charlotte’s night started with promise and ended in frustration in an 8-6 loss to Memphis. The Knights built a three-run cushion, only to watch it disappear as the Redbirds scored five straight late.
David Sandlin was the bright spot on the mound, taking a quality start after six innings in which he allowed three runs on six hits, including a solo homer in the first. The offense gave him support early, with Edgar Quero singling and Dru Baker doubling him in during the first.
Korey Lee then created a run in the third with a walk, a stolen second, and a sprint home on a Camilletti double. Andy Weber added a two-run homer in the fourth to make it 4-1.
Memphis answered with two in the sixth, and Charlotte looked ready to seize control in the seventh when Ryan Murphy opened the inning by issuing three walks. Ryan Galanie erased that chance with a double play, but Camilletti followed with a two-run hit to push the Knights ahead 6-3.
From there, though, the bullpen couldn’t hold. Peyton Pallette allowed two runs in the seventh, the offense went quiet in the eighth, and Wikelman González was tagged for three more in the ninth as the Redbirds finished the comeback.
Birmingham had the opposite kind of night, rolling past Montgomery 11-4. The Barons struck first in the opening inning behind Jacob Burke’s double, a Caleb Bonemer single and steal, and a Boston Smith hit.
After the Biscuits responded with three runs in the second to take a brief lead, Colby Shetlon put Birmingham back on top with a two-run homer in the home half. Burke later added a two-run blast in the fifth to stretch the margin to 6-3, and the Barons broke it open with four runs in the eighth.
Jorge Corona and Alec Briley both drove in runs in that frame, and Phil Fox closed it out with two scoreless innings for the save.
Winston-Salem needed every bit of nine innings to get past Greenville, 5-4. James Taussig launched his seventh homer of the season in the first to give the Dash an early 3-0 lead, but Juan Carela gave it right back in the second by allowing three runs.
The lead kept changing hands after that, with Ryan Burrowes getting hit by a pitch and Jeral Perez lining a triple to right in the third to put Winston-Salem back in front 4-3. Greenville tied it in the seventh, setting up the finish.
In the ninth, Eddie Park doubled, Matt McShane walked, Burrowes struck out, Perez drew another walk, and George Wolkow ended it with a walk-off single.
Kannapolis didn’t leave much doubt in a 12-6 win over Wilson. Gabriel Rodriguez gave up a solo homer to put the Warbirds ahead early, but the Cannon Ballers answered in the second with an RBI single from Steven Lancia and a two-run double by Jurdrick Profar.
Lancia then broke things open with a bases-clearing triple in the third, and Jaden Fauske kept the pressure on in the fourth with a triple of his own before Matthew Boughton added an RBI single. Lancia stayed hot in the fifth with another RBI hit, Fauske drew a bases-loaded walk, and Adrian Gil chipped in an RBI single in the sixth.
Lancia finished with five RBIs after a groundout brought in another run, and Boughton added one more in the ninth.
In the ACL, the White Sox were overwhelmed by the Rangers in an 11-1 loss that ended after seven innings. Osniel Castillo’s sixth-inning single was the only hit for the ACL White Sox, who also drew three walks. The Rangers piled up 11 runs on 13 hits and went 8-for-17 with runners on.
The DSL White Sox got the cleaner end of the day, blanking the DSL Mariners 4-0 in seven innings. It was scoreless through four and a half before Orlando Patino reached on an errant throw and Dionys Medina dropped a bunt for a hit.
Nestory Perez bunted them over, a strikeout followed, and a wild pitch brought Patino home for the first run. The Sox added three more in the sixth on Ronald Cardoza’s RBI single and Medina’s two-run hit.
On the mound, three pitchers combined on three hits and no runs, with starter Roderic Ramirez setting the tone by working four shutout innings with two hits, three walks, and two strikeouts.
In Other News...
White Sox May Try A Surprising Plan With A Top Pitching Prospect
Tanner McDougal is getting close to pitching again, which gives the White Sox another important arm to monitor as they think about how best to handle one of their higher-upside young pitchers. The organization has been patient with the right-hander while he works back from a flexor strain, and his return comes at a time when Chicago is still sorting through long-term plans for its pitching pipeline.
What makes McDougal especially interesting is the possibility that his next step might not be the straight line most prospects take. The White Sox have precedent for easing talented arms in through relief before stretching them out later, and there is at least some logic to that path for a pitcher whose workload still needs to be managed. Whether that becomes a short-term bridge or something more meaningful for his development is the question hanging over his comeback. [Read more 🡒]
Two White Sox Pitching Rehabs Just Became Worth Watching
Two White Sox pitching rehabs are suddenly worth tracking in Winston-Salem, where Shane Smith and Tanner McDougal both opened their assignments with scoreless work for the Dash. Smith handled two innings without allowing a walk or hit batter, while McDougal came back with a clean inning of his own and two strikeouts in three batters faced, a tidy pair of first steps after time away from game action.
For a Chicago club still sorting through arms, the timing matters as much as the results. Smiths return gives the White Sox another chance to monitor a pitcher trying to reestablish himself, and McDougals outing arrives with the possibility that his path back could be shaped by what the organization needs most in the final weeks. The next few appearances should show whether these are just encouraging first reps or the beginning of something more useful for the big league picture. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Could Be Pulled Into A Brutal Crosstown Pitching Chase
The starting-pitching market around the deadline always gets tricky, and this one may get especially awkward on the South Side. The Cubs are looking to shore up a rotation that has been battered by injuries and uneven performances, and ESPNs David Schoenfield has pointed to one of the more intriguing arms on the board as a possible fit. Even with a 4.81 ERA, the right-hander is still being viewed as one of the better available starters, which says plenty about how thin the rental market can be this time of year.
For the White Sox, the timing matters because they are in the same conversation for the same kind of help. Any pursuit of rotation depth can quickly turn into a race, and the possibility of both Chicago clubs chasing the same arm only adds another layer to a deadline that already figures to be busy. The question now is whether the Sox are willing to push hard enough to keep pace if the market starts moving faster than expected. [Read more 🡒]