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I wrote some about Cholowsky and looked at White Sox potential bonus pool in Draft Notebook 2.0 today: https://www.futuresox.net/2026/02/22/white-sox-2026-mlb-draft-notebook-2-0/

God I love Jon Miller. Such an iconic voice. Glad he still calls games. He and Joe Morgan were the voices of my baseball childhood for national games. RIP Joe. I hope he and Ed Farmer are calling games up in heaven.

It really only counts for young players to get a role and start off well. And of course to get ready for the season without injuries. Which isnt easy as we've seen.

Problem is the Sox would still be the second best team in the city…

The games don't count fellas.

They aren't getting fans to Bridgeport for anything but championship teams.

God, this is SO good to see. My life is in absolute shambles and ruin, the ashes still smolder with only hope being the thread which binds life… And yet, I watch the black and white uniform of favor from my toddler years to present day… And everything wrong is forgotten for a moment. Welcome back Chicago White Sox, you are the only remaining vestige of innocence within me. How great the game of Baseball is. Cheers to 2026, fellas. 👏🏼⚾️🧦🏟️

While Baldwin’s bat still needs development, this final stage needs to be at the major league level. And while his outfield defense still needs a lot of work, I don’t see any benefit for that happening in the minors vs. the majors. As such, I just don’t see a reason to send him to AAA to simply protect one of Lee or Mead. If you desperately want to protect both of them, you could send Quero down to start the season and actually give Lee some runway in hopes of boosting his trade value. I’m not really in favor of that either, but there is more inherent logic to it in my opinion as it gives Teel & Quero everyday reps behind the plate for a short bit while we see how the DH / OF mix plays out. Ultimately though, I just don’t see the purpose of Mead on this roster unless there is an injury or a Sosa trade. And I don’t really love the idea of a third catcher and don’t see him being a long-term fit for this roster.

Baldwin getting sent down would tick me off. He has already proved everything there is to prove in AAA. He needs regular at-bats at the MLB level.

Burke and Fedde better pitch well because there are a lot of guys coming for their spots.

Would love to see him pushing for a rotation spot by May.

Lebron seems like a nice player but this isn't even close.

McDougal looked fantastic today.

His comment didn't count fellas. It's spring training for commentings too

Sox leading the league in 4-letter last names.

Hellebuyck stood on his head and stole the game for the USA. He's been dogged by a bad reputation in big games but he came through. McDavid trying to play hero ball and got burned. He will never be Sid.

To me, it suggests they have found they same thing we've been looking at for years.

Neither guy has to be a flip candidate. By 2027 this team will be serious about trying to compete. In the unlikely event Kelenic is good, he can be a corner OF for us in two competitive seasons. And with essentially no long term payroll on the books, Murakami shouldn’t be an impossible resign unless he goes full Babe Ruth.

On the pitching side, here is how I see things shaking pending no more injuries or trades: Rotation: Smith (R) Kay (L) Martin (R) Burke (R) Fedde (R) Bullpen: CL: Dominguez (R) SU: Leasure (R) SU: Taylor (R) MR: Newcomb (L) MR: Vasil (R) MR: Gilbert (R) MR: Hicks (R) LR: Paez (R) Pitching staff feels mostly locked in at this point. While the last two rotation spots may technically be open, I’d be shocked if anyone took over Burke & Fedde to start the season. That being said, I really think McDougal could be up by May. He is not eligible for PPI, so there is zero reason to force him onto the OD roster. However, after 4 to 8 weeks in Charlotte I think he could get the call if all goes well. As such, that just leaves the final two bullpen spots as legitimate battles, which I expect to go to one RH and one LH. The second LH reliever role is wide open at the moment and I only went with Gilbert due to option status. I think there is a high possibility of Murphy winning this role. Beyond those two, both Eisert and Borucki are possibilities, but feel like they will start at Charlotte baring big camps. As for the RH side, Paez is the hands down favorite for the last spot. I don’t think he’s a guarantee, but I think the Sox believe he‘s a long term major league starter and will try their best to keep on the roster this season. His Rule 5 counterpart is certainly another guy who will be pushing for a spot, but Alberto is going to need a massive camp to jump Paez. Gonzalez has one option left but is probably Paez’s biggest immediate threat, while Berroa is probably his biggest long term threat once healthy. I wouldn’t be shocked if a NRI guy also pushed for a spot, but my guess is the Sox would carry Paez into the season before promoting one of them.

I don't think sending Baldwin down for a couple of weeks while they sort out their roster at the beginning of the season isn't a big deal. There's 29 more spring training games to go. Somebody's going to get injured. Maybe Sosa, Lee or Mead get traded. Again, I think Baldwin should come north with the team. We all know that if he doesn't, it's not because the team doesn't think he's ready. Teams shuttle guys with options remaining to hang onto a guy they like. I think it's funny to plan to be angry if some decision is made in the future. Baldwin will be optioned if a series of things happen that are all good. Mead is doing good enough that he won't make it through waivers. Acuña/Pereira/Kelenic look solid.

I’m actually in favor of Baldwin getting more time in CF and Acuña earning more time there, pushing Baldwin to a corner.

Kelenic can start the season in AAA. Unless he absolutely destroys the baseball this spring, that should be the no doubt plan. He was fucking dreadful last year and we should make him prove himself over a longer period before committing to him at the major league level.

Oh I’m in favor of that happening in the majors as long as he’s consistently playing.

Doesn’t seem like Benintendi will be in the outfield all that much. In that case, there should be consistent at-bats for Baldwin in one of the corners. Let him play one position consistently and hopefully he’ll improve defensively.

Thank you and a thank you to @Autumn Dreamin for all the updates. Doing a great job.

SunTimes' notes: Munetaka Murakami will play more first base before leaving for Japan - Chicago Sun-Times - Murakami will be at 1st rest of time before WBC - using data to know when to challenge - coaching box policing hit and miss - quickie recap - Rockies on deck, Michael Lorenzen goes for Colorado

Yeah, this kid is going 1-1. The Sox would have to get cute to convince themselves otherwise.

I don’t see how they could justify sending down Baldwin. He is clearly one of their best nine or 10 positional players and should be in the lineup most days.

Baltimore traded back for him after the Westburg injury

McDougal was sick with the slider that inning. Winner winner enjoy your dinner !

Antonacci draws a walk. He's a pest !

Tristan Peters 422 ft. bomb lefty on lefty .5-2 !

T-Mc 0 R, 1H, 1K

McDougal 1st appearance of spring.

Romo with an infield bloop behind the pitcher for another Sox run. Antonacci stole 2nd and advanced to 3rd on a WP. So hustle run makes it 4-2.

Roch just went deep

Antonacci with a spicy meatball RBI !

It only counts if it goes your way.

This is honestly hilarious. I love that you are gatekeeping the city of Chicago when like three million other people live there, plus the millions who work there, visit there, etc. I am sure you know more than the professional franchises who have done their own assessments which consist of a little more than a rando from the neighborhood drove by there before. It literally doesn't matter a microbe what you or I think of the neighborhood. Get out of your feels for once and look at the numbers. The Sox attendance and revenues are among the worst in baseball. That is an indisputable fact. Their attendance only bouncing up in extreme winning seasons, and otherwise being near the bottom of baseball is also a fact. Don't like it? Look at the numbers and get over it. Like it or not, where the White Sox are located does nothing for its overall fan base, as it is very clearly one of the smallest and least loyal through down years. Again don't believe me, Look at the numbers. The team across town doesn't have these problems. They also have basically have no surface parking and no ingress/regress, aren't near an expressway etc, to speak of either. They get 40,000 people a night to that park, no matter what the teams record is, and they do it almost exclusively with mass transit. Tell me what the differences are between the Sox and Cubs are that explain this if it has nothing to do with stadium, location, and/or neighborhood, as the Cubs overcome every you are afraid of. None of your arguments hold up to facts.

Get him signed quickly in 26, give him his low A/A experience, then see if he can run the three levels by the ASB/September in 27. He's one of the most league ready hitters to come through the draft in quite a while. He will tell you by his play as a pro if he can do it.

I acknowledge that the Bears stadium issue is really complicated and nuanced and that no one has all the relevant facts and figures to have a fully informed opinion, so I’ll keep this at a high level. I’m a little surprised at how many people are so willing to completely side with the Bears here. Are politicians greedy and corrupt? Lol obviously. But however cynical you want to be about politics, you have to acknowledge that at least a small sliver of their job, by nature, is to represent the best interests of the people. They might suck at it, but it’s still a slice in the pie chart of what they do. The Bears? They’re a private for-profit business. Their primary objective is to make as much money as possible. You know, like a private for-profit business tends to do. I know it’s hard to believe, but they give even less fucks about you than politicians do.