Farm Fortnight: The 2024 White Sox farm system at first glance

With two weeks of the minor league season in the book, it's time to dust off Farm Fortnight, our biweekly survey of the White Sox farm system and White Sox prospects of note.

These posts appear every other Tuesday, taking advantage of the standard dark day on the minor league schedule to freeze the numbers longer than 24 hours. If you're not an avid daily reader of the Minor Keys, this is another way to catch up on what you've missed -- at least if you're a Patreon supporter.

Given that Charlotte is the only affiliate that has played two full series -- including one it'd like to forget -- there aren't a whole lot of sweeping statements to be made about where anybody is in mid-April. These are a lot closer to first impressions that can be easily overwritten, even if some of the descriptions seem to have staying power.

Charlotte Knights

• Last three series: 1-2 at @Memphis; 1-5 vs. Norfolk; 3-3 @Jacksonville
• Record: 5-10
• Next two series: vs. Syracuse; @Lehigh Valley
• Individual stats

After going 18-56 during the second half of last season, the last thing the Charlotte Knights needed was an early homestand against a fully loaded Norfolk Tides team that detonated any hopes of a respectable run differential. It'll take them a while to clean up the mess -- and the White Sox are once again disrupting any semblance of a cohesive roster with frequent transactions early -- but they saved some face in Jacksonville. Let's see if the pitching staff holds up any better at Truist Field against a less impressive Triple-A Mets roster that features both Trayce Thompson and Yolmer Sánchez.

Position Players

*Colson Montgomery started quietly before homering in back-to-back games in Jacksonville. The strikeout rate is less than ideal, but not entirely surprising for a guy like Montgomery, who:

1. Just turned 22
2. Is playing his first games in Triple-A
3. Doesn't consider swinging until a 2-2 count.

The last one is hyperbole, but a guy who is exceedingly comfortable taking pitches will probably need some time to figure out the balance between patience and passivity. The good news is that Montgomery eclipsed last year's stolen base total in 14 games, which is a sign that he's moving better this year.

*Zach DeLoach spent all of last season in Triple-A with Tacoma, where he set a career high in homers (23) and strikeouts (173). The balance is going the wrong way thus far.

*Oscar Colás is back in the minors, and the addition of Tommy Pham will likely further ensconce him. He had a good week and a bad week, although the bad week featured a major league per diem, so it could've been worse.

*Adam Hackenberg is striking out more than 50 percent of the time, which has never been a signature of his game, even during less impressive seasons. He'll need to fix that in a hurry.

Pitchers

*Nick Nastrini lent some credibility to my Davis Martin Theory, where any pitchers with promise are to spend as little time in Charlotte as possible, because the environment is more likely to demoralize them than boost their stock.

*Jonathan Cannon, it's your turn, at least for now. His spot in the rotation feels less secure, especially with the progress shown by ...

*Brad Keller, who will have Mike Clevinger joining him in the veteran starter ranks.

*Prelander Berroa gave up five runs in his first one-third of an inning, so it's going to take weeks to dig himself out of that hole. He bounced back from that miserable week against Norfolk with three scoreless outings against Jacksonville, so there's hope for him still. Gregory Santos still isn't close to MLB game action, at least.

Birmingham Barons

• Last two series: 3-0 vs. Chattanooga; 2-4 @Rocket City
• Record: 5-4
• Next two series: vs. Mississippi; @Chattanooga
• Individual stats

The Birmingham Barons didn't quite stack wins the way their opening sweep against Chattanooga portended, but sloppy weather in Huntsville shortened games over the course of their six-game series against Rocket City. The Barons still lead the league in runs, OBP and homers with run prevention that's top half in the eight-team Southern League, so the general concept is still holding together.

Position Players

*Bryan Ramos is what this Birmingham offense is missing. He hasn't had many nine-game stretches like this one, but at least it's not affecting his glove.

*Edgar Quero spent the last week avenging the trade from the Angels system. The early power display is welcome, since impact contact was the only thing missing from his game last year. It's weird to see him with only one walk in 32 plate appearances, but the Trash Pandas plunked him four times in six games, so maybe there are jilted feelings on both sides.

*Wilfred Veras is letting his freak flag fly. There is no line more Wilfred Veras than that one.

*Brooks Baldwin has a small but vocal fan base from his UNC Wilmington days, I've learned from my post from a few days ago. He's justifying my early intrigue.

*Terrell Tatum is also being his usual self -- lots of walks, lots of strikeouts. BABIP (and a little more power) are on his side for the time being.

*Tim Elko struck out in 36 percent of his plate appearances with Birmingham last season, so he's off to a better start with regards to accessing his power on a more regular basis.

*Jacob Burke might find it tougher to will his way on base like he did with Kannapolis and Winston-Salem last year, based on the early returns.

*Duke Ellis isn't a prospect in the classic sense, but that line gives you a sense of how much fun it is when he's getting on base.

Pitchers

*Drew Thorpe looks overqualified for Birmingham, because his changeup might be one of the best individual secondary pitches in Double-A. He probably should throw it against Triple-A hitters, so he'll be a good test of the lengths the White Sox will go to prevent their prized pitchers from needing to ply their trade in Charlotte for longer than necessary.

*Jairo Iriarte should have something to gain from Birmingham longer than Thorpe, just because he has a far more casual relationship with the strike zone.

*Jake Eder is throwing more strikes. There will come a time where "he's throwing more strikes" isn't enough, but it represents progress for now.

*Ky Bush was sitting at 93 mph in his first start, which is an improvement over where he was late last season after coming over to the White Sox from the Angels.

*Mason Adams was BABIP'd to death in his only start of the season to date. Either he'll eventually be rewarded for his strike-throwing in Double-A, or this is why he nibbled so much at Birmingham with his late-season cameo last year.

*Below Charlotte, none of the bullpens have any players who appear eminently fast-trackable this early, so we'll save the pitcher conversations for starters until the sample sizes grow.

Winston-Salem Dash

• Last two series: 1-2 @Asheville; 2-4 vs. Greensboro
• Record: 3-6
• Next two series: @Bowling Green; vs. Rome
• Individual stats

Through nine games, the Dash have allowed the most runs in the South Atlantic League, along with the most walks. They also have the most strikeouts. That feels like a pretty accurate of a Winston-Salem pitching staff that's better than it's shown, but also could be less than the sum of its parts due to some highly combustible elements. I'll be driving up to Bowling Green a couple of times this week to see the Dash in person, with Noah Schultz's start a particular priority.

Position Players

*Jacob Gonzalez started the season 0-for-11, but he's riding a six-game hitting streak since. If he keeps this up, he'll render his draft-year performance at Kannapolis irrelevant, beyond perhaps providing a valuable learning experience.

*Samuel Zavala is showing a little of everything early, for better or for worse. He doesn't turn 20 until mid-July.

*DJ Gladney turns 23 a day before Zavala turns 20, so it's not great if the contact issues follow him into another season.

*Loidel Chapelli didn't look like he deserved to return to Winston-Salem to start the season, but he's not proving anybody wrong yet.

Pitchers

*Noah Schultz has dominated Sally League hitters in seven of his eight innings (don't ask about the other inning). If that continues to be the ratio, then it's a matter of whether the White Sox want to challenge his stuff, or if they want to spend the year allowing Schultz to build up his workload. It's a lot easier to get up and down in High-A, unless Schultz's stuff is just as baffling anywhere he plays.

*Peyton Pallette would like a lower ERA, obviously, but the strikeout-to-walk ratio is a lot closer to what everybody expected him to show in Kannapolis last season.

*Tanner McDougal, no notes. Yet.

*Juan Carela has a history of improving walk rates, so his struggles throwing strikes are uncharacteristic thus far.

*Tyler Schweitzer had a harder time with efficiency in High-A compared to Kannapolis last season, so if nothing else, his one start provided a refresher of the task at hand this season.

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers

• Last two series: 1-2 @Charleston; 3-3 vs. Augusta
• Record: 4-5
• Next two series: @Myrtle Beach; vs. Charleston
• Individual stats

It took a couple of years, but I'm finally used to referring to Kannapolis as a Carolina League affiliate, rather than a member of the Sally League. The Cannon Ballers are 11th out of 12 in runs scored in the CL, which is to be expected, but at least the pitching staff is responding in kind. Through nine games, the Ballers have been outscored 34-28.

Position Players

*Ronny Hernandez will spend the whole season as a 19-year-old, so if he doesn't look overmatched at a full-season affiliate in April, he's already ahead of the game.

*Rikuu Nishida is creating action, as he is known to do. He's also playing two-thirds of his games in left field, with the other appearances at second base.

Pitchers

*Seth Keener threw five shutout innings in his Low-A debut, then walked five batters over four innings his next time out. He's transitioning to starting from the Wake Forest bullpen, so expect some turbulence.

*Lucas Gordon, conversely, spent the last two years in the Texas Longhorns rotation, so his pitchability might not be pressed in Kannapolis.

*Aldrin Batista is up to 29 strikeouts against 28 baserunners over 29 innings in his Kannapolis career dating back to last season. He turns 21 next month.

*Jake Peppers did all he could in his Low-A debut. He's a ninth-round pick, but a ninth-round pick that got full slot value, rather than a senior signing.