In light of a difficult situation, the Chicago White Sox are pivoting on the fly. With the loss of a Minor League Baseball season in 2020, recent high priority draft selections are taking the next step in their development by working as part of the organization’s 60-man player pool in suburban Schaumburg.
The latest to join the mix is 2019 third round pick Andrew Dalquist. Dalquist is one of three high school right-handers now in Schaumburg, including Jared Kelley and Matthew Thompson, who were selected in the top three rounds of baseball’s amateur draft over the last two seasons. Garrett Crochet, 2020’s No. 11 overall pick out of Tennessee is also in Schaumburg as he was among the first players added to the White Sox player pool in July.
Similar to Thompson, the White Sox took it easy on Dalquist in 2019. Dalquist turned in three appearances in the Arizona League last year, while Thompson notched two. Should the prep righties have benefited from a full spring training, both Thompson and Dalquist were ticketed for Single-A Kannapolis in the early part of this season.
Pitching in live situations has been a struggle for the two due to the lack of opportunity. Schaumburg now allows for that possibility.
Kelley’s situation is more unique on account of this being his first professional season fresh out of high school. The Sox can afford to stay patient and lighten the workload on Kelley, who is too valuable to be training away from the watchful eye of major league coaching.
Crochet, meanwhile, is the lone arm among the group who could realistically see time with the major league club at some point this season. The lefty lost out on his junior year at Tennessee due to COVID-19 following a steady increase in velocity and overall improvement in his stuff.
Crochet’s arm is fresh and his stuff can get major league hitters out today. A call up this year should not be dismissed, although the White Sox have been consistent in the way they bring up talent.
“We want to make it about the individual player, not about the need in Chicago or a hole somewhere on the roster,” Rick Hahn told reporters yesterday.
Ebbs and flows of the 60-game campaign will dictate roster organization, but priority prospects are on their own timeline. Without getting too ahead of ourselves, incorporating the four top prospects into Schaumburg is a savvy way to avoid losing out on a prime year of development.
CROCHET IN SCHAUMBURG
Crochet spoke a week ago about his time at the alternate site and mentioned he’s focused heavily on the development of his changeup dating back to the beginning of the offseason. He is also working on pitch grips.
“I’ve been trying out a couple new pitch grips,” Crochet said. “There’s a little bit of tinkering to do there. Just messing around with my four-seam. I felt like there was some more untapped potential there that will give it more of a different visual to hitters.”
Crochet is working closely with members of the Sox organization like Everett Teaford, who are using technology to help develop pitch efficiency.
“I’ve never been coached to throw a specific pitch grip and having guys tell me exactly how I should be gripping the ball to get it to spin with how the technology says it should be spinning,” Crochet said.
The 21-year-old has a clear understanding of why he’s among the talent in Schaumburg, while at the same time, understanding how close he is to the game’s highest level.
“Main thing is getting acclimated to the organization,” he said. “I believe overall that’s the reason I’m here currently and really just develop overall as a person.”
He did admit a call-up to the majors is on his mind.
“If it wasn’t in the back of my mind then I probably wouldn’t consider myself a competitor,” he said. “That’s definitely something I’m thinking about at all times, but at the same time, I’m really just trying to juggle the new developments I’m currently undergoing like my four-seam grip. It’s kind of hard trying to make the 30-man when I just threw a bullpen the other day where my four-seam command wasn’t very good.”
Photo credit: Sean Williams/FutureSox
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