In what was otherwise a pretty putrid season for the White Sox farm system, the DSL White Sox stood out in 2023, at least offensively. They finished 32-22 and posted the league's second-best OBP from a younger-than-average lineup, both of which are rare for any White Sox team, particularly in the lower levels. Players like Javier Mogollon, Abraham Nunez and Stiven Flores posted big numbers in their professional debuts, and are enjoying decent starts stateside this year.
This year's DSL White Sox team has as much going for it as last year's team did at the onset, particularly the $1.8 million signing of Eduardo Herrera, which is the biggest investment the White Sox have made in a traditional signing since Micker Adolfo received $1.6 million in 2013. The hope is that whatever offensive success stories will be accompanied by a little more pitching, as that was the weak link in Boca Chica in 2023.
The DSL season officially started on Monday, although the White Sox team's debut was postponed due to rain, so it'll take at least a day to start finding out which players will be receiving the priorities for innings, whether on the mound or at a given position.
DSL White Sox Coaching Staff
- Manager: Anthony Nuñez
- Hitting coach: Julio Bruno
- Pitching coach: José Brito
- Assistant coach: Angel Gonzalez
- Infield coach: Guillermo Reyes
There's no turnover of this staff from year to year, but the last two positions are new.
Pitchers of note
- Marco Barrios
- Jeziel Boekhoudt
- Yhoiker Fajardo
- Orlando Suarez
- Alexandre Valdiviezo
Suarez was described by Ben Badler as an under-the-radar six-figure signing in January, as well as a pitching prospect to watch in his DSL preview, as he hits mid-90s for a player who turned 17 in December. Fellow Venezuelan Fajardo joined Suarez in the latter article due to increased velocity and a willingness to bust hitters inside. Valdiviezo, a $100,000 signing who turns 17 today, is the youngest pitcher on the roster. Boekhoudt, who signed for $55,000, is the other pitcher on this roster who was born in 2007, and a product of the team's heightened scouting of Curacao. Barrios will make his professional debut in 2024, but he signed back in October as part of the previous year's class, and Badler called him a sleeper thanks to a 93-mph fastball and the potential to serve as a starter.
Pitchers not (yet) of note
- Angel Bello
- Carlos Bernal
- Yerardo Ciofani
- Reudis Diaz
- Ricardo Gomez
- Oscar Hernandez
- Jommy Hernandez
- Jose Malave
- Alexander Mateo
- Emilio Rosiario
- Juan Ruiz
- Manuel Rumbos
- Fabian Ysalla
Badler called Ysalla a sleeper prospect of the 2023 signing class after converting from shortstop, but he'll be repeating the level at age 19 after an unremarkable debut season (Badler did tab Javier Mogollon as the other sleeper prospect, so there's reason to take note of the label). Bello is the youngest of the group, as he'll be 17 until late July. Everybody else on the staff is 18 or older.
Catchers
- Elier Gil
- Juan Oviedo
- Elias Riera
- Alvario Rios
- Renny Sillet
With none of the catchers signing for notable amounts -- and with Monday's rainout depriving us of knowing the Opening Day assignment, we're left to take birthdates and work backwards. Sillet was born in 2007, while Rios, a $55,000 signing out of Panama, will be 17 through the entirety of the season. Oviedo is on the 60-day injured list.
Infielders
- Rafael Alvarez
- Ryan Castillo
- Eduardo Herrera
- Jehancarlos Mendez
- Jesus Premoli
- Jhoangel Suarez
- Eyke Ugueto
- Juan Uribe
This area of the roster is where the major investments are concentrated. They're led by Herrera, a power-hitting third baseman whose frame might make it difficult to stay there, as he stands 6'3" and 210 pounds at the age of 17.
Moving on to players who signed for less than $1 million, Profar ($600,000) is a 17-year-old Curacao native and brother of Jurickson Profar who should open his career at shortstop, perhaps splitting time with Mendez, the cousin of Eduardo Nuñez who signed out of the Dominican for $260,000. Premoli ($550,000) will not play shortstop, because he's already 6'4" and 225 pounds as a 17-year-old. Suarez, another 17-year-old Venezuelan, signed for $55,000.
Then it's the previous year's signings, led by Alvarez, a 19-year-old Cuban who hit .215/.461/.333 over 35 games with the DSL White Sox. Ugueto played a fairly clean infield by DSL standards in 2023, but hit just .188/.350/.260. Uribe's line (.131/.384/.180) was even more severely skewed in the OBP column.
Outfielders
- Albert Alberto
- Marcelo Alcala
- Christian Gonzalez
- Noel Severo
With only four outfielders on the roster, we'll probably see some listed infielders get more run on grass than on dirt. Gonzalez, a $550,000 signing out of Venezuela, is the youngest of the group. He's a 17-year-old speed merchant with a small-ball, spray-hitting approach from the left side. Alberto (.205/.391/.313) and Alcala (.245/.417/.408) will start their age-18 seasons returning to the DSL, and when you see the OBPs, it's easier to understand how the 2023 DSL White Sox reached base at a .408 clip as a group.
White Sox Minor Keys
ACL Royals 4, ACL White Sox 3
- Abraham Nunez went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts.
- Javier Mogollon was 0-for-3 with a walk.
- Adrian Gil went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
- Angelo Hernandez was 0-for-3 with an HBP and two strikeouts.
- Stiven Flores singled before being replaced.
- Christian Oppor: 3.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
