Take a break from the White Sox's eight-game losing streak to think about three key firsts that took place elsewhere in the organization on Tuesday.
Yolbert Sánchez's first Triple-A game
It didn't hurt any timetables to have Sánchez start the year in Birmingham, but he showed that he'd truly solved Double-A pitching. He took the bat-to-ball skills he showed last year and added the exemplary discipline that showed up out of nowhere in the Arizona Fall League, and the result is 55 crazy games:
| Year | PA | XBH | BB | K | BA | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 155 | 10 | 5 | 16 | .343 | .369 | .469 |
| 2022 | 67 | 1 | 13 | 7 | .352 | .508 | .373 |
| Total | 222 | 11 | 18 | 23 | .345 | .412 | .443 |
You'd probably like more power, but one shouldn't expect an onslaught of extra-base hits at any point. He's a hand-oriented hitter who finds space in the outfield.
Anyway, he made his Triple-A debut on Tuesday and went 3-for-5 with three identical singles, so he's on track to fulfill my blurb in the top prospects list:
WHY YOU’D REGRET TRADING HIM: Because the Sox are already ruing the Nick Madrigal trade, and if you give Sánchez some time in Charlotte, he’s probably the best in-house candidate for a lengthy audition at second base over the second half of the 2022 season.
Oscar Colás' first home run
The Winston-Salem Dash opened a six-game series in Asheville, which means two things:
- The games are probably going to have a ton of homers.
- The games aren't going to be streamed.
Game 1 fulfilled both, as the Dash scored 14 runs, including homers by Colás and Bryan Ramos.
With Asheville's charming-but-cramped McCormick Field, it's worth looking up the direction of the homers to contextualize the accomplishment. For instance, Ramos homered to center ... which is just 373 feet away, so it might've been a deep flyout in just about every other park.
On the other hand, Colás homered to left center. At 370 feet, that's the deepest part of the park relative to standard dimensions, so it reflects pretty strong opposite-field power. If he cleared the 297-foot wall to right field, we might have to count it as a half-homer.
Carlos Pérez's first strikeout
Before Madrigal showed up, Carlos Pérez had owned the title as the organization's king of contact for striking out just 23 times over 138 games in the rookie-ball leagues. Even if Madrigal were still around, Pérez might be able to wrest back that status.
Pérez went 70 plate appearances into the season before striking out in his final at-bat on Tuesday, and even then, he fell behind 1-2 before extending the at-bat to seven pitches.
Better yet, he drew a walk earlier in the game to add to his plate-discipline cushion. For the season, he's hitting .288/.324/.500 with four walks to one strikeout over 71 PA. There isn't room for him in Chicago with Yasmani Grandal and Reese McGuire there, but he looks worthy for an audition if and when the White Sox need a third catcher.
Jacksonville 9, Charlotte 2
- Yolbert Sánchez went 3-for-5 with a strikeout in his Triple-A debut.
- Carlos Pérez finally struck out during his 1-for-4 day, but he also drew a walk.
- Micker Adolfo singled twice, walked and struck out.
- Jimmy Lambert's return to Charlotte: 4.2 IP, 12 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 4 HR, 1 WP
Rocket City 6, Birmingham 4
- Lenyn Sosa went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Yoelqui Céspedes doubled and struck out thrice.
- José Rodríguez went 0-for-3 with a walk.
Winston-Salem 14, Asheville 4
- Oscar Colás hit his first stateside homer and added a double while going 3-for-6 with two strikeouts.
- Bryan Ramos returned to the lineup in a big way: 4-for-6 with a homer and a double.
- Luis Mieses was 0-for-4 with two walks and two strikeouts.
- Adam Hackenburg went 2-for-4 with a strikeout and an HBP.
- Harvin Mendoza, 1-fr-4 with a walk and a strikeout.
- Sean Burke: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 2 HR
