2023 White Sox Affiliate Review: Kannapolis Cannon Ballers

In what ended up being a generally dismal season on the farm in terms of the standings for the four full season affiliates, the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers were the lone full season club to finish with a record above .500.

The team came out of the gate strong but fell a bit short of winning the first half division title, finishing with a record of 35-30, four games out of first. As expected, lots of player movement plus an influx of recent draftees changed the look of the second half squad. The Ballers finished the second half with an identical record to their 2022 mark of 32-34, ending the 2023 campaign with an overall record of 67-64.

The Cannon Ballers offense did improve upon their 2022 OPS mark of .683 with a .704 mark, finishing third in the Carolina League in that category and finished second in home runs with 95 on the season.

Being (on average) the oldest offensive group in the league by quite a fair margin (nearly a year older than the next closest team), Kannapolis finished with the fifth most strikeouts, fourth in walks, and the most RBI (579) in the league.

Hitters	Age	R/G	BB%	K%	AVG/OBP/SLG
Kannapolis	22.5	4.92	11.5	25.5	.242/.340/.365
League	20.9	4.68	11.3	25.3	.237/.334/.352

Keeping pace with their teammates on offense, the Kannapolis pitching staff was the oldest (on average) in the league, narrowly edging out two other clubs. The club was bottom five in regards to ERA with a 4.38 mark, was middle of the pack in WHIP with a 1.374 total (to be exact), and allowed the second highest amount of home runs (95) in the league..

The Ballers once again struggled in generating strikeouts, finishing with the third lowest total in the league while being a middle of the pack club in regards to issuing free passes.

Pitchers	Age	R/G	BB%	K%
Kannapolis	22.1	4.69	10.9	23.6
League	21.6	4.68	11.4	25.3

PITCHERS

Mason Adams: 2022 13th round pick Mason Adams had a fantastic first full professional season, advancing all the way to Birmingham by season’s end. The 23 year old right hander’s time in Kannapolis was quite successful, throwing 77 ⅔ innings with a 3.36 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 94 strikeouts and 18 walks. Adams appeared in 17 games, piggybacking behind an “opener” before shifting to the rotation full time.

Tyler Schweitzer: 2022 fifth round southpaw Tyler Schweitzer was another member of the 2022 draft class that found success in Kannapolis before being promoted to Winston-Salem in July. The then 22 year old pitched 67.2 innings with a 3.86 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 76 strikeouts and 21 walks in 13 starts with Kannapolis.

Peyton Pallette: 2022 second round pick Peyton Pallette was drafted while recovering from Tommy John surgery, so his first taste of professional action didn’t come until this season. Pallette operated under an innings limit as he was working his way back to form, but was able to show flashes of the stuff that enticed the White Sox to select him in the first place. The 22 year old righty pitched 72 innings to the tune of a 4.13 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 78 strikeouts and 41 walks across 22 starts, spending the entirety of his first professional season in Kannapolis.

Shane Murphy: 2022 14th round pick Shane Murphy was another mainstay in the Cannon Ballers rotation, as the 6’5″ southpaw pitched 96.2 innings. Murphy had a fantastic start to the 2023 season before tailing off some at the end, but still ended the year with a more than respecatable 3.63 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and 98 strikeouts to 23 walks.

Tanner McDougal: Another pitcher building up his workload post-Tommy John surgery, 2021 fifth round pick Tanner McDougal spent the entire season as a member of the Cannon Baller starting rotation. Working under an innings limit, the 20 year old made 21 starts throwing 69.1 innings with a 4.15 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 80 strikeouts and 43 walks. While the command eluded him at times, the right hander’s first full professional season did show flashes of the etinicing high spin-rate stuff.

Seth Keener: 2023 third round pick Seth Keener made three very brief starts for the Ballers near the end of the season, throwing a total of 6.1 innings with seven strikeouts.

Aldrin Batista: Acquired for international bonus pool money from the Los Angeles Dodgers, 20 year old righty Aldrin Batista was promoted from the Dodgers Arizona Complex League team to make five solid starts with Kannapolis. Batista pitched 23.2 innings with a 2.66 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 21 strikeouts and 7 walks.

Connor McCullough: 2022 undrafted signee Connor McCullough was dynamite in his starts with Kannapolis before being promoted to Winston-Salem in late May. The 23 year old right hander made seven starts, throwing 37.1 innings of 2.17 ERA baseball with a 0.78 WHIP, 44 strikeouts to just seven walks.

POSITION PLAYERS

Mario Camilletti: 2022 eighth round pick Mario Camilletti really knows how to get on base, as he paced the Carolina League in both OBP (.432) and walks (84) among qualified hitters. The 24 year old second baseman put together a nice season with the Ballers, producing a .289/.432/.375 triple slash with an .807 OPS, 25 extra base hits (23 doubles, two home runs), and a 139 wRC+ across 97 games before his promotion to Winston-Salem in late August.

Bryce Willits: 2022 18th round pick Bryce Willits was another member of a recent draft class to perform admirably in his first full season. Willits, who turned 24 on August 25, hit .263/.356/.430 with a .786 OPS, 28 extra base hits (15 doubles, one triple, 12 home runs), and a 124 wRC+ in 88 games before a promotion to Winston-Salem in early August. Willits spent the majority of his time in Kannapolis playing first base (23 starts) and third base (45 starts).

Brooks Baldwin: 2022 12th round selection Brooks Baldwin was putting together a solid season with the Ballers while mostly playing third base. Baldwin, who turned 23 on August 15, slashed .245/.338/.445 for a .783 OPS, 26 extra base hits (13 doubles, three triples, 10 home runs), and a 120 wRC+ in 67 Carolina League games. Baldwin also went 14-for-19 on stolen bases and was also promoted to Winston-Salem in early August where his offense took off while also manning a new defensive home.

Jacob Gonzalez: 2023 first round selection Jacob Gonzalez had a brief tune-up in the ACL before playing in 30 games to cap off his draft season. The 21 year old shortstop had a rough beginning to his professional career, batting .207/.328/.261 for a .589 OPS with one home run in 30 games. The Ole Miss product did display a good eye at the plate, nearly walking (20) as much as he struck out (23) in his first taste of professional baseball.

Eddie Park: Where Jacob Gonzalez struggled out of the gate, 2023 eight round pick Eddie Park had a nice debut after signing. The outfielder hit .333/.426/.383 for an .809 OPS and was 4-for-4 in stolen bases in 21 games with Kannapolis.

Chris Lanzilli: 25 year old outfielder Chris Lanzilli put together a solid season for Kannapolis in two separate stints with the club. Lanzilli posted a .302/.391/.459 slash line for an .850 OPS, 20 extra base hits (14 doubles, six home runs), and a 143 wRC+ in 56 games with the Cannon Ballers.