2021 ACL White Sox season review

Camelback Ranch, White Sox spring training home
(Ron Vesely/Chicago White Sox)

With the elimination of the short-season rookie and A-ball leagues, Major League Baseball put a lot of eggs into the basket of the Arizona Complex League, which was the Arizona Rookie League/Fire League under the old format.

There were a handful of players in Kannapolis that could’ve used a Great Falls — and we’ll cover them when we assess the 2021 season for the Cannon Ballers. As for the players who stayed in Arizona the entire season, it’s worth wondering if perhaps the level of competition was a bit higher than usual, if only because there was no short-season exhaust port for an influx of college players. In particular, the average age of pitchers was a few months older than in previous seasons.

The ACL White Sox didn’t have the easiest time in the new landscape, going 25-34. There were some success stories, but they ony graduated a couple of players to Kannapolis, and they had their work cut out for them in A-ball. Most players who opened the season with the ACL White Sox stayed put. There were some success stories amid the struggles, which were pronounced when it came to their work at the plate.

At least the White Sox were of average age on both sides of the ball, which hasn’t been the case in most ACL/AZL seasons.

HittersAgeR/GBB%K%AVG/OBP/SLG
ACL White Sox19.84.5310.032.0.229/.324/.359
League19.85.2411.427.5.252/.353/.392

PitchersAgeR/GBB%K%
ACL White Sox20.85.4912.427.6
League20.95.2411.427.5

Pitchers

Tanner McDougal: The White Sox’s fifth-round pick opened his career with an immaculate inning, and he closed his season departing his final game after one-third of an inning. He had a couple of brilliant outings a couple mediocre ones, and one disaster, and his season stats — 9⅔ IP, 10 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 2 HR, 5 BB, 17 K — capture both the potential of an 18-year-old with a limited prep track record, and the amount of work remaining. Here’s hoping the last game was merely the result of not wanting to push him so close to the end of the season, and not anything more severe.

Cristian Mena: The $250,000 signing out of the Dominican Republic in the class of 2019 posted a 7.82 ERA, but like McDougal, there were bursts of better. He struck out 62 against 21 walks over 48⅓ innings, which isn’t bad for an 18-year-old’s first professional season. He also bookended his season with his two best outings, combining for 16 strikeouts and one earned run over nine innings of work with his first and last starts. He got hit around a lot in between, but there’s value in competing in the zone and figuring out how not to get beat, rather than beating yourself before the other team gets a chance.

Ronaldo Guzman: Case in point, Guzman, who walked 48 batters against 46 strikeouts over 39 innings in his stateside debut. It was a letdown after an encouraging age-16 season in the DSL two years ago, when he struck out 76 against 29 walks over 59⅔ innings. He ended up in the same place as Mena (7.62 ERA) by being less hittable due to worse control. He had a couple of worthwhile outings, including four innings of one-hit, one-walk ball against the Rangers where he struck out eight on Aug. 27, but there’s a lot of work remaining for the lefty.

Erick Bello: Bello had similar problems, with 28 walks over 26⅓ innings spread out over 21 relief appearances, only four of which were walkless. Like Mena, he made his pro debut in the ACL after signing for $200,000 out of the Dominican in 2019. He had a 5.47 ERA and 30 strikeouts while only yielding one homer all year, so it wasn’t all bad.

Noah Owen: Of the 2021 collegiate arms who remained in Arizona for the entire season, Owen had the best numbers, racking up 25 strikeouts against three walks and 12 hits over 18 innings, which was good for a 2.00 ERA in his eight games. He doesn’t turn 21 until October, so he’s on the younger side for a pitcher with a little major-program experience.

Tommy Sommer: The 10th-round pick out of Indiana University is right up there with Owen, with 33 strikeouts against seven walks over 25 innings. He allowed just 13 hits, but three of them left the yard, which contributed to a slightly worse ERA (2.16). Also, he turns 23 in four days, so the lefty was ahead of the competition in a few respects.

Position players

Colson Montgomery: If you’re looking for reasons to be disappointed by the White Sox’s first-round pick, he finished his first pro seasons still in search of his first homer and stolen base. Everything else was encouraging. He hit .287/.396/.362 with seven doubles, 13 walks and 22 strikeouts over 111 plate appearances, all of which plays. A Baseball Prospectus’ in-person account said he needs to use more than his hands with his swing, but the overall ability isn’t as raw as his multi-sport background would suggest.

Wes Kath: The White Sox’s second-round pick was supposed to be the more advanced hitter hitter between the two 19-year-old hitters, but he had a tougher go of making contact, hitting .212/.287/.337 with 42 strikeouts over 115 plate appearances. He’s hasn’t crossed a double off his list, yet he has three homers and two triples. He played third base just about the entire season and committed five errors over 25 games, which is a lot for a big-leaguer, but decent for rookie ball.

Wilfred Veras: He’s younger than both Montgomery and Kath, yet he was easily the ACL team’s best hitter, with a .322/.416/.533 line and 21 walks to 42 strikeouts over 178 plate appearances. He hit just four homers over 46 games, but he had 16 doubles and two triples, and he also lined up one of each for a cycle back on Aug. 5. He played third before Kath’s arrival forced him over to first, so his bat will have to lead the way. He signed for $200,000 back in 2019.

Cam Butler: The 15th-round pick was supposed to face a stiff adjustment to professional baseball after excelling in small-school circuit in Modesto, Calif., and that certain bore out. He hit .083/.254/.125 over 69 plate appearances, with 11 walks and 27 strikeouts. Considering he started his career 0-for-20 with 13 strikeouts, the final line actually represents some improvement over the course of the season. Let’s see where he is next summer.

Jefferson Mendoza: The 20-year-old got off to a strong start but faided over the second half of the season, hitting .188/.268/.344 with 21 strikeouts over his final 71 plate appearances. He ended up leading the team with five homers, so he’s still mildly interesting for a catcher.

Benyamin Bailey: Though he’s just 19, Bailey had one of the more disappointing seasons in White Sox prospect ranks. Maybe Kannapolis was too tall a task for his first dose of stateside ball, but he hit just .216/.347/.320 over 150 plate appearances after he was reassigned to the ACL. Factor in his work at Low-A, and he finished at .193/.303/.272 overall, which wasn’t the encore Sox fans hoped to see after he hit .324/.477/.454 as a 17-year-old in the DSL.

Logan Glass: He had the benefit of repeating the ACL after a decent debut there after being selected out of Oklahoma’s prep ranks in 2019. Alas, 2021 was a step back in every way:

  • Slash line: From .284/.342/.403 to .159/.269/.310
  • Strikeout rate: From 31.5% to 46.7%.

In fact, the more he played at the level, the further from average he got. He finished his season going 1-for-19 with two walks and 15 strikeouts over his last six games.

Elijah Tatis: He finished with a .297 OPS. Not a .297 OBP. A .297 OPS.

* * * * * * * * *

White Sox Minor Keys: Sept. 20, 2021

DSL White Sox 5, DSL Orioles1 2 (6 innings)

  • Victor Quezada went 1-for-3 with a strikeout.
  • Manuel Guariman was 0-for-3.

(Photo by Ron Vesely / Chicago White Sox)

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As Cirensica

Thank you for this Jim. Very disappointing to see Bailey “progress”. I think you summarized Elijah’s baseball future very well. I guess we can trade him now. Wilfred Veras looking interesting. Hopefully it sticks.

burning-phoneix

I’m heartened by Bailey’s above average OBP despite a low BA. Having a good batting eye is a good foundation to build a hitter on. I’m usually more wary of these guys in the minors who something like .330 but only have like a 2% walk rate and a 35% strikeout rate. Those guys get exposed easily.

Papa Giorgio

My initial thought when I first saw this headline that it was going to be a review of various White Sox knee ligaments. I realized quickly that was not the case, but for the record would be interested in an article with said content, Jim.