This series will recap the performances of each White Sox minor league affiliate throughout the week. Here is the seventh installment of the 2022 season.
Charlotte Knights (16-26)
Weekly Record: 1-5
This week in Charlotte, the Norfolk Tides came to town and Adley Rutschman made a few cameo appearances before making his major league debut over the weekend. It was a pretty bad showing for the Knights, though, dropping five of six games. Charlotte is in eighth place and 10 games back in the International League East Division.
The offense wasn’t really the issue this week for the Knights. Charlotte’s lineup slashed .248/.319/.467 for a .786 OPS. They also scored 34 runs, had 52 hits in 210 at bats, 13 doubles, no triples, 11 home runs, 21 walks to 68 strikeouts, and went 3-for-6 on stolen bases. Complete season totals for the Knights offense can be found here.
BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD is how I would describe the pitching results for Charlotte this week. The Knights were blasted by the Tides to a team ERA of 7.36, a 1.62 WHIP, .274 Batting Average Against, 45 earned runs to 52 runs allowed, 61 hits to 55 innings pitched, 28 walks to 65 strikeouts, hitting four batters and allowing 16 home runs. Complete season totals for the Knights pitching staff can be found here.
🔥 Hot Player of the Week 🔥
2R upper deck shot by Mark Payton on a high fastball puts the #Knights up 2-1. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/C03a46A383
— White Sox Daily (@dailywhitesox) May 19, 2022
Mark Payton: Local product Mark Payton had himself a ridiculous week at the dish. The 30 year-old outfielder slashed .550/.609/1.150 for a 1.759 OPS, scoring six runs, knocking in eight, with three doubles and home runs, and 11 hits across 20 at-bats.
Honorable Mentions: Seby Zavala, Yolbert Sanchez, Brandon Finnegan, and Andrew Perez
Birmingham Barons (14-25)
Weekly Record: 1-5
Rocket City came to town to take on the Barons and decided to dish out a similar punishment that the Norfolk Tides gave to the Knights. The Trash Pandas whopped on the Birmingham boys, taking five of six. The Barons are in last place and are nine games back in the Southern League North Division.
Mirroring their higher affiliate, the Barons bats had a pretty successful week against Rocket City pitching. Birmingham hit .257/.338/.460 for a .798 OPS. They also scored 28 runs, had 52 hits in 202 at-bats, 11 doubles, no triples, 10 home runs, 20 walks to 60 strikeouts, and went 8-for-10 on stolen bases. Complete season totals for the Barons offense can be found here.
The Barons pitchers had better results than the Knights pitchers, but they were both bad this week. Birmingham had a team ERA of 6.00, a 1.94 WHIP, .321 Batting Average Against, 36 earned runs 39 runs allowed, 72 hits to 54 innings pitched, 33 walks to 50 strikeouts, and hit three batters while allowing five home runs. Complete season totals for the Barons pitching staff can be found here.
🔥 Hot Player of the Week 🔥
Lenyn Sosa with an absolute 💣. 2nd of the game and the 8th of the year. Jose Rodriguez (1B/SB) comes in to score. #Barons tied up at 4. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/guZpKEbUJO
— Ian Eskridge (@dailywhitesox) May 18, 2022
Lenyn Sosa: This will come as no surprise, but Lenyn Sosa was outstanding. The 22 year-old slashed .444/.444/.815 for a 1.259 OPS, scoring four runs, nine RBI, one double, three home runs, and had 12 hits across 27 at-bats.
Honorable Mentions: Ian Dawkins and Craig Dedelow
Winston-Salem Dash (19-19)
Weekly Record: 3-3
The Asheville Tourists made a pit stop in Winston-Salem to battle the Dash last week. The Dash were able to rebound against the Tourists after dropping three in a row to work a series split. The Dash reside in fourth place and are four games back in the South Atlantic League South Division.
The Dash offense came back strong after a tough previous week. Winston-Salem ended the series with a .299/.388/.430 slash line for an .818 OPS. Additionally, the Dash scored 43 runs, had 66 hits in 221 at bats, 13 doubles, two triples, four home runs, 28 walks to 55 strikeouts, and went 7-for-9 on stolen bases. Complete season totals for the Dash offense can be found here.
The Dash encountered some tough competition in the Tourists offense. Winston-Salem concluded the series with team ERA of 5.40, a 1.55 WHIP, and a .252 Batting Average Against. Winston-Salem also allowed 38 runs (33 earned) on 52 hits over 55 innings, 33 walks to 55 strikeouts, with six hit batters and seven home runs allowed. Complete season totals for the Dash pitching staff can be found here.
🔥 Hot Player of the Week 🔥
Terrell Tatum is 5-7 with 2 2B’s and a HR in his last 2 games. This is his first HR with the #Dash, and it isn’t a cheapie. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/E2DR3XTfuv
— White Sox Daily (@dailywhitesox) May 21, 2022
Terrell Tatum: Terrell Tatum was scorching hot for the Dash last week. The 22 year-old slashed .750/.800/1.250 for a 2.050 OPS, scoring six runs, knocking five doubles, one home run, eight RBI, and had 12 hits across 16 at-bats.
Honorable Mentions: Luis Mieses, Duke Ellis, and Cooper Bradford
Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (17-22)
Weekly Record: 0-6
One word can accurately describe last week for Kannapolis: woof. The Cannon Ballers dropped all six games against the Fayetteville Woodpeckers in what was a week to forget. Kannapolis is in fifth place and 11 games back in the Carolina League South Division.
The Cannon Baller bats were better than last week, but still not great. Kannapolis slashed .233/.346/.311 for a .657 OPS, 25 runs scored, 48 hits in 206 at-bats, six doubles, two triples, two home runs, 31 walks to 75 strikeouts, and ridiculously went 17-for-17 on stolen bases. Complete season totals for the Cannon Ballers offense can be found here.
Collectively, Kannapolis pitching last week was rough. The Cannon Ballers scuffled to a team ERA of 7.50, 1.72 WHIP, and a .288 Batting Average Against, 47 runs (45 earned) on 60 hits over 54 innings. They also issued 33 walks against 55 strikeouts, hitting three batters and allowed 13 home runs. Complete season totals for the Cannon Ballers pitching staff can be found here.
🔥 Hot Player of the Week 🔥
Colson Montgomery jacks a rolling hanger steak over the seats pull side. It was his 2nd this year and the #Ballers only run, they would lose 2-1. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/YLncTbrYLn
— White Sox Daily (@dailywhitesox) May 18, 2022
Cristian Mena with a gem for the #Ballers today. He went 6.0 IP on 53 of 77 for strikes. He scattered 5 H’s but erased the single in the 3rd by picking off the runner before the next pitch. The only Pecker to reach 2B on him was a 2B in the 5th. 0 R, 0 BB w/ 8 K’s. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/KGWmTaT5gk
— White Sox Daily (@dailywhitesox) May 18, 2022
Colson Montgomery and Cristian Mena: Not an overly impressive week for the Ballers, but they did have two notable standouts on each side of the ball. Colson Montgomery displayed some of the offensive skill that made him the White Sox first round pick in last years draft. The 20 year-old hit .318/.464/.545 for a 1.009 OPS, scoring four runs, one triple, one home run, four RBI, and had seven hits across 22 at bats.
Meanwhile, the Cristian Mena strikeout party keeps on rocking. Mena was once again outstanding, throwing six innings of five hit baseball, striking out eight and not allowing any runs or walks.
Payton put up some great AAA numbers in the past. Is there any reason to think he could be helpful if the Sox need a bat or are his past major league numbers what to expect?
As debunkers would argue, the absence of evidence is evidence enough.
Curious why Mena isn’t getting the love in the Minor Keys? He’s 19 with eye popping numbers. I know we are only scouting the stat line, but it’s a helluva stat line.