With the White Sox' previous international signing class limited by the penalties incurred by blowing out their budget for Luis Robert -- a decision that looks smarter with every passing game -- the White Sox' Dominican Summer League affiliate is short on name-brand talent.
There are only two real ways to know whether an international player is worth following before the start of a season:
- He received a sizable bonus that counted against a team's pool.
- He was written up by Ben Badler of Baseball America.
With the White Sox limited to maximum signing bonuses of $300,000 the last two years, it's hard to follow the money. That leaves scraps of notes from Badler and his (few) peers, and then a wait to see if any of the age-appropriate players stand out for their performances. Even then, we won't know if there's material talent underneath the better stat lines until we see whether they make it to stateside ball the following year.
That said, here's a stab at identifying some key players at the onset of the DSL White Sox season.
Position players of note
- Jefferson Mendoza, C
- Luis Pineda, C
- Alberto Bernal, 1B
- Anthony Espinoza, SS
- Enoy Jimenez, SS
- Wilber Sanchez, SS
Pineda, Bernal and Espinoza came out of the most recent July 2 signing group. The Venezuelan Pineda received $300,000 for his power potential behind the plate, while Bernal and Espinoza both received $250,000. Bernal is a Cuban signed for his bat, as you might expect from somebody who was signed as a first baseman, while Espinoza is a well-rounded athlete at shortstop.
Mendoza signed for the $300,000 maximum in the first year of the Luis Robert penalty period. He hit just .207/.289/.289 as a 17-year-old with the DSL White Sox last year. Jimenez is Eloy Jiménez's brother.
Sanchez jumped out to be if only because he, Bernal and Pineda are the only position players born in 2002. It also helps that he opened the season with a six-game hitting streak. Benyamin Bailey and Robert Gutierrez are also 17 years old, but born in September and November of 2001, respectively.
Pitchers of note
- Jendersson Caraballo, RHP
- Ronaldo Guzman, LHP
- Jose Jimenez, LHP
Caraballo signed for $350,000 on July 2 as part of the Robert class, but after struggling in his pro debut at age 17, he didn't appear in any affiliated ball during the 2018 season.
Badler called Guzman an intriguing lower-dollar signing thanks to a fastball up to 89 mph with easy arm action and an athletic delivery that he repeats well to throw strikes with an advanced changeup for his age." The White Sox acquired the Dominican lefty for $75,000.
There's nothing out there about Jimenez, but he's the one listed pitcher younger than Guzman. There's nothing out there about Jimenez, but he's the one listed pitcher younger than Guzman.
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By the way, all the White Sox farm affiliates were rained out on Saturday with the exception of the DSL club, so treat this as the day's Minor Keys.
DSL Orioles1 8, DSL White Sox 5
- Anthony Espinoza went 0-for-4 with a walk.
- Wilber Sanchez, 0-for-2 with three walks and a strikeout.
- Jefferson Mendoza was 1-for-4.
- Benyamin Bailey drew four walks and struck out once.
- Roberth Gutierrez went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Enoy Jimenez, 0-for-1 with a walk
