Chicago White Sox

When is this game supposed to start?

Hopefully he’s ok.

Game delayed.

From what I’ve seen, Basabe definitely K’s a lot looking. And I may be in the minority, but I’d rather see that than a lot of swing & miss. Becoming more aggressive is something that can be addressed with time, a lack of plate discipline or a giant hole in your swing is much harder to correct IMO.

With Eloy still in AAA the answer is most definitely yes. Once he's called up it will get interesting. However, the Sox will still have a consensus top 40 prospect in Robert, three guys who have all cracked top 100 lists in Basabe, Adolfo, & Rutherford, a guy who will likely make some lists in the offseason in Gonzalez, & our second round pick from this year's draft in Walker. That doesn't even include any of the more fringe guys like Call who has actually been pretty solid in AA and probably warrants more attention.

There is also a race element here. The first guys to the show will be given an opportunity to take a job and run with it. I think that gives a huge advantage to Basabe. He's been pretty solid in AA and is starting to show signs of adjusting. The same applies to Gonzalez if he starts off hot at AA.

Below are the top 11 hitters in the Carolina League based on wRC+. Five of these guys are on the older side (+23 years old). Two of the remaining guys are Keston Hiura & Carter Kieboom, both top 100 prospects. Three of the others are Sox outfielders: Luis Gonzalez, Micker Adolfo, & Luis Basabe. Out of these hitters, Basabe has the 2nd highest ISO at .237. He has the second highest BB % at 13.9%. He doesn't steal a ton of bases, but he does have plus speed. He's also a legit CF with a plus arm capable of playing all three OF positions. Outside of the K rate (which is a concern), there to like here for a 21 year old. I'm super high on this kid.

He should start cracking top 100 lists after this season and has passed both Adolfo & Rutherford on my list of top OF prospects in the system, right behind Basabe.

The Good: Abreu: 9.1% BB rate, 20.3% K rate, .302 ISO, .315 BABIP, .974 OPS, 161 wRC+ Rodon: 6 GS, 44.2 IP, 7.25 K/9, 2.82 BB/9, 0.20 HR/9, 1.41 ERA, 2.98 FIP Narvaez: 16.5% BB rate, 15.2% K rate, .246 ISO, .327 BABIP, .984 OPS, 170 wRC+ The Bad: Giolito: 6 GS, 34.2 IP, 8.83 K/9, 3.89 BB/9, 10.4 HR/9, 4.93 ERA, 4.17 FIP Moncada: 16.4% BB rate, 35.7% K rate, .148 ISO, .258 BABIP, .631 OPS, 78 wRC+ Anderson: 1.6% BB rate, 22.2% K rate, .171 ISO, .290 BABIP, .669 OPS, 74 wRC+ The Ugly: Lopez: 7 GS, 38.0 IP, 6.63 K/9, 3.32 BB/9, 2.84 HR/9, 7.34 ERA, 7.06 FIP Avi: 6.6% BB rate, 29.2% K rate, .177 ISO, .177 BABIP, .570 OPS, 52 wRC+

Yes, you’re correct, although I think it was always a long-shot he’d stick there.

Gonzalez is definitely starting 2019 in AA. I think Rutherford will also get the call alongside one of Robert or Adolfo. Really depends how Robert looks in the fall league. Then whenever Basabe gets bumped up to AAA, the other guy held back in A+ will get promoted to AA.

I would say Rivera has the best chance and he’s still got to convince us that he’s an actual prospect and not some kid beating up on younger competition.

Borchard & Lee (to a lesser extent) were pretty well regarded, but the answer is probably yes.

I do think calling up Kopech now means the Sox plan to be fairly active in free agency & makes it incredibly unlikely they consider moving Rodon.

Trust me, I would prefer to keep him down there until next season, but he’s probably been the best pitcher in the minors over his last seven or so starts. There isn’t really argument to be made that he isn’t ready.

He ultimately forced the issue with this recent stretch of dominance. The more I think about it, the harder it would have been to justify sending him back down there to start 2019. Spending parts of three seasons in AAA would have been ridiculous for a prospect of his caliber.

Make that 21 now.

No offense, but this is just stupid.

It only makes sense if they plan on being competitive in 2019 and that’s seems like a stretch given how most of the young guys have played this year.

Renteria is a complete fucking joke.

Can someone tell me what our OPS or wRC+ is against the Royals vs. all other teams?

Yes, it was dumb, just frustration boiling up inside. I still have hope for Lopez, but just not sure Cooper is the guy who can untap his potential based on what I’ve seen this year.

100%. Shields should have no bearing on Kopech’s arrival and if it does then god help us all.

I may be Lopez’s biggest fan on this site, but Cooper has done a horrible job with this kid. I’ve watched nearly every one of his starts and it’s painful to see him make practically no progress with his secondary offerings. Hell, he was barely using his changeup for stretches this season. And why in the world did he completely abandon his curve, when that was his best breaking ball coming up in the minors? I just don’t get what Cooper’s gameplan is here, but it doesn’t appear to be working.

Literally the day I change my tune on this and believe Hahn is thinking big picture, they forgoe a season of control for a handful of starts in a meaningless season. I’m super excited to see Kopech up with the big league team, but boy does this decision feel bittersweet.