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2024 White Sox Affiliate Preview: Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (Single-A)

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Of all of the full season affiliate White Sox clubs, the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers had the most successful season (record-wise) in 2023, with multiple recent highly profile arms making their way through Atrium Health Ballpark. The Cannon Baller offense finished third (out of twelve) in the Carolina League with a .704 OPS and second in home runs with 95 while the pitching staff finished eighth in the league with a 4.38 ERA and a tied for sixth with a 1.37 WHIP.

In 2024 the pitching staff looks to be the initial strength of the club, a majority of which were recent White Sox draft picks or signings. Offensively, some higher profile reinforcements should arrive once those players get fully healthy, but the roster does have some intrigue in each of the catcher, infielder, and outfielder groups.

Two of our top 30 prospects on our pre-season list are on the initial Kannapolis roster and both should occupy rotation spots, while one player from our just missed list made the club and should be in line for the majority of reps behind the plate.

Pat Leyland returns as the manager of the Cannon Ballers along with former White Sox farmhand and current pitching coach Blake Hickman, and hitting coach Charlie Romero. Daniel Millwee also returns to Kannapolis, only this time as the bench coach for Pat Leyland, while Donovan Clark rounds out the staff as the performance coach.

White Sox

The initial roster is as follows (current age in parenthesis).

Pitchers

  • Nick Altermatt (RHP, 24)
  • Frankeli Arias (LHP, 20)
  • Aldrin Batista (RHP, 20)
  • Jake Bockenstedt (RHP, 24)
  • Bryce Collins (RHP, 23)
  • Christian Edwards (RHP, 25)
  • Lucas Gordon (LHP, 22)
  • Seth Keener (RHP, 22)
  • Drew McDaniel (RHP, 23)
  • Mark McLauglin (RHP, 23)
  • Jesus Mendez (RHP, 19)
  • Jake Peppers (RHP, 22)
  • Billy Seidl (RHP, 24)
  • Emerson Talavera (RHP, 21)
  • Tommy Vail (LHP, 24)
  • Manuel Veloz (RHP, 23)
  • Garrett Wright (RHP, 22)

The arms that jump out here are the favorites to start for the Ballers. Aldrin Batista returns to Kannapolis after being acquired from the Dodgers last season for international bonus pool money. The 20 year old slotted into the Cannon Baller rotation right away after his acquisition and did not disappoint, making five starts with a 2.66 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts across 23.2 innings.

Seth Keener, Jake Peppers, and Lucas Gordon were all 2023 draft picks that saw limited action in their professional debuts but are likely occupy rotation spots for the Cannon Ballers. Drew McDaniel is another option for a rotation spot as he made 17 starts for the club last season with a 4.60 ERA in 78.1 innings.

Billy Seidl returns to Kannapolis after an up-and-down season in the bullpen where he recorded 14 saves and 53 strikeouts in 53.1 innings, but had a 1.44 WHIP and hit a team leading 17 batters. Bryce Collins was an off-season signing by the White Sox after pitching for the LSU Tigers in 2022 and 2023 and striking out 56 batters across 49 innings. Manuel Veloz will also begin the season in Kannapolis after pitching 66 innings last year to a 3.82 ERA., Emerson Talavera and Mark McLaughlin will also return to Kannapolis to add depth to the bullpen, while Christian Edwards will also make his return after missing all of 2023 with an injury.

Nick Altermatt, Frankeli Arias, Jake Bockenstedt, Jesus Mendez, Tommy Vail, and Garrett Wright will round out the staff in Kannapolis. In 2023 Frankeli Arias logged 54 innings in the Arizona Complex league last season with 52 strikeouts and a 4.67 ERA and Jesus Mendez threw 15.1 innings for the ACL White Sox as well with 17 strikeouts and a 4.11 ERA. Jake Bockenstedt saw very limited action for the ACL White Sox (six innings) in 2023 but was starting for SIUE prior to turning pro. Nick Altermatt, Tommy Vail, and Garrett Wright will all be making their professional debuts.

Catchers

  • Ronny Hernandez (19)
  • Juan Gonzalez (23)
  • Luis Pineda (22)

The catching group for the Cannon Ballers has some experience, as Luis Pineda returns after appearing in 29 games in 2023 where he had a .566 OPS. Juan Gonzalez was acquired last June from the Toronto Blue Jays and appeared in 34 games with a .743 OPS. Ronny Hernandez is the focal point of the catching group here, as he was by far the best offensive player for the ACL White Sox last season, slashing .338/.430/.493 for a .923 OPS en route to being named a 2023 ACL Post-Season All-Star.

Playing nearly two years younger than the average, the 2022 international signing out of Venezeula played in 45 games, walked 22 times to 35 strikeouts, and had 16 extra base hits (12 doubles, triple, three home runs). Batting from the left side, Hernandez has a quick swing and has shown solid plate discipline in the box. There are still some refinements necessary behind the plate for the young backstop, as the gaudy caught stealing numbers in the DSL did not exactly translate once stateside (as expected), but Hernandez will be one of, if not the most, exciting offensive players to follow on the Cannon Ballers in 2024.

Infielders

  • Caden Connor (23)
  • Christopher De Guzman (24)
  • Edrick Felix (22)
  • Arxy Hernandez (20)
  • Mikey Kane (22)
  • Javier Mora (21)
  • Wilbur Sanchez (22)

The infield group also has some players returning for more action in Kannapolis. The White Sox signed Christopher De Guzman in June and he saw some limited action throughout the 2023 season. Javier Mora really struggled in his first go-round as a Cannon Baller, while Wilbur Sanchez is most definitely known for his glove work more than what he’s able to produce with the bat (.610 OPS in 89 games with Kannapolis last season).

After being a 14th round selection in 2023, Edrick Felix saw brief work in Kannapolis last season (12 games) and will return there to begin 2024. Felix does possess some pop from the right side, but showed some swing and miss (in a small sample size), whiffing 23 times in 21 games.

Caden Connor was a 19th round selection in the 2023 draft and made his professional debut in the Arizona Complex League, getting into nine games near the end of last season. Similarly, Mikey Kane was a 17th round selection last year and also saw a brief amount of action (seven games) in the ACL. Arxy Hernandez spent all of 2023 in the ACL manning third base, but struggled at the plate, sputtering to a .619 OPS and four extra base hits in 34 games.

Outfielders

  • Alvaro Aguero (21)
  • Albertson Asigen (22)
  • Matt Hogan (24)
  • Rikuu Nishida (22)

Newcomers to the organization Matt Hogan and Albertson Asigen make up half of the initial Kannapolis outfield group. Hogan was signed this off-season from the Rocky Mountain Vibes of the independent Pioneer League, where he slashed .290/.409/.566 for a .974 OPS with 19 extra base hits (six doubles, three triples, 10 home runs) in 45 games. Hogan also smashed 19 home runs in 63 at Oral Roberts in 2023 for a 1.123 OPS.

Albertson Asigen joins the White Sox from the Red Sox organization, where between the Florida Complex League (14 games) and Salem Red Sox (42 games) the then 21 year old slashed a combined .322/.437/.439 for an .876 OPS, 13 extra base hits (eight doubles, three triples, two home runs), and went 20-for-25 on stolen bases. Asigen did have a 15.4 BB% in the Carolina League last season, but that also came with a 26.9 K%.

After spending the previous two seasons with the White Sox ACL affiliate, Alvaro Aguero will make the jump to a full season affilitate to open 2024. Aguero cut his K% down from 36.3 in 2022 to 23.6 in 2023 while also going 25-for-31 on stolen bases across the last two seasons.

An 11th round draft pick last year, Rikuu Nishida returns to Kannapolis where he played in 19 games after signing. Nishida nearly walked (eight) as many times as he struck out (nine) in his brief time in Kannapolis while seeing time in both left and center field. Nishida has great bat-to-ball skills and is a above average runner, so he should bring some excitement all over the diamond anytime he’s out there.

Rookie ball starts early this year but it still won’t begin until May 4th. Some of the top 30 players in the system who aren’t quite ready for Low-A are expected to start their seasons with the White Sox’s affiliate in the Arizona Complex League. 18-year-old outfielder George Wolkow and 18-year-old infielder Javier Mogollon will headline that roster on the offensive side. Some young hurlers with high upside include recent fifth round southpaw Christian Oppor and 12th round righty Mathias Lacombe. Panamanian infielder Ryan Burrowes likely joins the Cannon Ballers as well but he’s nursing an injury in Arizona currently.

2024 FutureSox Preseason White Sox Top 30 Prospect List