The Chicago White Sox introduced a number of its prospects to advanced level A ball in 2023.
Guillermo Quiróz was hired by the organization in 2019 and began his White Sox coaching tenure at Triple-A Charlotte. Quiróz later spent two years as manager of the Low-A affiliated Kannapolis Cannon Ballers. He was moved to manage the Advanced-A Winston-Salem Dash in 2023, aligning with many White Sox prospect promotions.
The 2023 Dash finished 60-66 overall, going 34-29 in the first half and 26-37 in the second, landing them in 4th place of the South Atlantic League “South” division.
The pitching staff finished with a 5.38 ERA, which ranked 11th of 12 South Atlantic League teams. Pitchers issued the fourth fewest walks in the league compared to tallying the 11th most strikeouts. The staff also had the second-worst WHIP in the league at 1.484.
Hitters finished with a .254 batting average (3rd), .349 OBP (2nd) and .389 SLG (7th) good for a .737 OPS (4th). The Dash’s 100 total home runs ranked 9th in the South Atlantic League. Baserunners stole 179 bases, which ranked 6th.
HITTERS
26 White Sox prospects took plate appearances at the High-A level. Leading the way as every day players were: Loidel Chapelli, Shawn Goosenberg, DJ Gladney, Wilfred Veras, Wes Kath, Michael Turner and Taishi Nakawake.
Chapelli, a late addition to the 2022 international signing class, completed his first full season stateside. His 106 games were played exclusively as a member of the Dash. The 21-year-old Cuban only played second base. He finished the year slashing .254/.361/.422 (.772) with 10 home runs, six triples, 20 doubles and 26 stolen bases on 32 tries (81% success rate). In 466 plate appearances, Chapelli struck out 115 times compared to 61 walks, good for a 13.1 percent walk rate.
Gladney was a prep pick by the White Sox in 2019 and offers plenty of pop in his 6-foot-3 frame. The 21-year-old has dealt with swing-and-miss issues throughout his career, but he demonstrated improvement across his inaugural 96 games at High-A. Gladney’s 19 home runs ranked 6th most in the South Atlantic League.
Kath, meanwhile, after having spent the entire 2022 season at Low-A Kannapolis, was assigned to Winston-Salem. He logged 95 games and all were played at third base. The 20-year-old in his third professional season has now tallied 228 games played at the hot corner. He finished the year with eight home runs and a .586 OPS, while striking out 168 times compared to 37 walks.
Turner is one of several 2022 White Sox draft selections who saw success in 2023. Across his first full professional season, Turner slashed .309/.430/.411 (.871) with four home runs and 26 doubles. The freshly turned 25-year-old walked (64) more than he struck out (58). He also caught in 67 of his 92 games played.
Terrell Tatum was promoted from Winston-Salem to Double-A Birmingham at the season’s halfway point. Manning centerfield throughout 60 games at High-A, Tatum finished hitting .268/.434/.421 (.855) with four home runs, three triples, 14 doubles and 32 stolen bases on 41 attempts (78% success rate). Tatum ranks No. 14 in our mid-season top 30 White Sox prospect list.
Jacob Burke, who was invited to the Arizona Fall League following his first full professional season, earned a promotion to Winston-Salem after crushing competition in his 35 games at Low-A. The 22-year-old centerfielder held his own at the plate, but mentioned to Elijah Evans in an exclusive interview that he hoped to increase his slugging in 2024. Burke is slotted as our No. 16 prospect in the White Sox’s system.
24-year-old Tim Elko mashed his way to Birmingham after beginning the year in Low-A. Elko didn’t slow down in Advanced-A, as he seamlessly adjusted to the highest level of competition he’s faced in his career at the time to the tune of a .319/.374/.569 (.943) slash line. Elko finished 2023 with 28 home runs across three levels.
Brooks Baldwin, a switch-hitter, impressed the White Sox in 2023 and earned a promotion to Winston-Salem in August. Baldwin was the primary shortstop during his stint in High-A after playing third, second, center, left and shortstop at Kannapolis. The 2021 15th round pick smacked five home runs and finished with an .870 OPS in a career-high 93 games played. He hit .276/.351/.482 (.833) as a left-handed hitter and .225/.333/.327 (.660) as a right-handed hitter.
PITCHING
40 Sox pitchers took the rubber at Advanced-A this season. Starters were led by Kohl Simas, Connor McCullough, Andrew Dalquist and Jonathan Cannon.
Simas logged innings, but was hit hard throughout his 21 games (17 starts) as a member of the Dash. The overall numbers are disappointing for the former project Birmingham participant, but his 102 strikeouts over 82.2 innings were an improvement following a standout 2022 campaign.
Dalquist was a prep arm selected in the third round of the 2019 draft. He spent the summer at High-A but struggled with his pitch mix. The right-hander sported a 7.69 ERA across 22 games (15 starts) with 60 strikeouts compared to 49 walks in 62 innings.
Cannon is our 11th ranked White Sox prospect. The 23-year-old is solidifying his case as a legitimate starting option in the near future after throwing 121 innings across Double-A and High-A in 2023. Cannon saw his walk rate go up, which contributed to a higher than preferred WHIP, but the righty pitched five innings or more in 10 of his 14 starts at Winston-Salem.
Brooks Gosswein spent most of his time as a starter, making nine starts over 16 appearances in High-A before he was called up to Double-A at the end of the season.
Josimar Cousin was a late 2023 international signing and was assigned to Winston-Salem after a brief stint in rookie ball. He managed one strikeout per inning across his 10 starts in High-A and finished with a 5.37 ERA and 1.37 WHIP across 41 innings. Cousin was invited to play in the Arizona Fall League.
Left-hander Tyler Schweitzer earned his way to Winston-Salem after 67.2 innings pitched in Kannapolis. The starter ended his 2023 campaign with a 4.08 High-A ERA across 10 games (nine starts). A 5th round draft selection in 2022, Schweitzer logged 107.1 innings total in Single-A this year.
Juan Carela was a late season addition of the New York Yankees and was assigned to Winston-Salem immediately. The Dominican right-handed starter finished with a 3.34 ERA and 1.268 WHIP over 32.1 innings.
It was another brutal year for Norge Vera. The 23-year-old began the season in Winston-Salem. However, after two starts in April, Vera didn’t pitch with the Dash again until late August. He logged 15 total innings between the Arizona Complex League and High-A.
Jared Kelley began the year at Advanced-A as a starter. That changed on May 30th onward, as the 2nd round pick of 2020 moved exclusively to the bullpen. Kelley struggled to pitch quality innings consistently as a starter, but offered a much better performance as a reliever. He sported a 9.42 ERA and .322 batting average against through 14.1 innings as a starter in High-A compared to a 2.93 ERA and .177 batting average against through 27.2 innings out of the pen. Kelley was promoted to Double-A in July as a reliever. He is our 14th ranked White Sox prospect.
Mason Adams snuck on as our 30th ranked prospect after a superb first full professional season. Following 77.2 quality innings in Low-A, Adams made three starts in Winston-Salem before being challenged at Double-A Birmingham to end the year. The 13th round draft pick of 2022 finished with a 3.14 ERA in 109 total innings.
Jake Palisch went undrafted, but signed with the White Sox in 2022. The left-handed reliever appeared in the most games for the Dash and struck out 50 compared to just 13 walks in 42.1 innings.
Triston Stivors is an intriguing arm who was drafted in the 16th round of 2022. He has yet to allow a home run in 42.1 career innings. Stivors earned a promotion to Birmingham after notching a 3.71 ERA across 23 High-A appearances, striking out 40 compared to 15 walks in 26.2 innings.
Eric Adler remains a top-end relief prospect due to his stuff. Unfortunately, walks have kept the development of the 22-year-old righty to a slow pace. Adler was picked in the 6th round of 2022 and made his debut in High-A this year. He finished with a 2.70 ERA and 1.400 WHIP in his 16 appearances.