Pregame notes: Colson goes west

The White Sox didn't have any news of a hitting prospect getting called up to kick off their six-game homestand. Instead, their most prominent positional prospect is going in the other direction.

Chris Getz announced Tuesday that Colson Montgomery will be voyaging back to the team complex in Arizona to work extensively with hitting director Ryan Fuller. The old adage is that significant mechanical adjustments are too difficult for hitters to try to pull off in-season amid the rigor of preparing for daily competition. But fresh off an 0-for-6 showing on Sunday dropped Montgomery to a .149/.223/.255 line at Triple-A Charlotte for the season with a 41.7 percent strikeout rate, the Sox have decided to intervene.

"Players often times, they wait until the offseason to make some of these adjustments," Getz said. "We figured why wait. Let’s attack this, and we look forward to seeing what we can do."

Getz referenced Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo undergoing a similar process in his development while Josh Barfield was running player development in Arizona, The White Sox are hopeful Montgomery will return to Triple-A Charlotte within a week or two and this process may see Montgomery play in some extended spring games, but some progress likely needs to happen first.

"To get him out of that environment, not worry about his numbers, and focus on some adjustments, both physical and certainly approach, to be able to improve some things," Getz said of the drive behind the move. "We look forward to this opportunity to do it. He’s on board and we think good things will come out of it."

At least half of what Getz said in his 30-minute session could stand to be further unpacked, so Jim will take on this topic Wednesday morning.

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Tim Elko is slugging .732 in Charlotte with eight home runs in his last 10 games, and Getz acknowledged that "he's actually increased how hard he's hitting [the ball], and most importantly, how often he's doing it," yet the 26-year-old remains in Charlotte for now. The White Sox general manager did acknowledge his chance of being in Chicago later this year.

Andrew Vaughn is hitting .157/.202/.275 through 26 games and both Baseball Reference and FanGraphs' versions of wins above replacement have him tied for the least productive position player in the majors through the opening month. The team is also carrying Bobby Dalbec and Gage Workman as reserve corner bats, so it's not like Elko earning a spot is completely dependent upon Vaughn's situation. But asked directly about the former threatening the playing time of the latter, Getz decided to circle the wagons.

"We're more focused on supporting Andrew right now," Getz said. "He's been one of the more unlucky hitters in baseball. I know he wants greater results for the White Sox and for himself. And we expect more out of him. I know he's working very hard. And our job is to get the most out of each player and we know that there's more on the tank for Andrew."

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Infielder Chase Meidroth (right thumb inflammation) is expected to be activated from the injured list later this week. Josh Rojas (right big toe fracture) is manning shortstop at the start of a rehab assignment on Tuesday, and is expected to return to the White Sox roster next week.

Korey Lee (left ankle sprain) is beginning a running progression and is expected to be ready to return in two weeks, but Getz did not guarantee he would crack the roster if Matt Thaiss and Edgar Quero are healthy. Lee has a minor league option remaining. Mike Tauchman (Grade 2 right hamstring strain) could be seen working with trainers on Tuesday, but both he and Austin Slater (meniscus tear in right knee) are said to be 2-3 weeks away from a return.

There was no official update on Fraser Ellard (right hamstring strain) but he is in Chicago, participating in catch play with his teammates, so it stands to reason he could be activated soon.

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When Tyler Gilbert toes the slab Tuesday night, the White Sox will match the Tampa Bay Rays' 2018 record of four-straight games using an opener. Even without the thrill of running out on the field with the rest of the team, Bryse Wilson is effectively a member of the rotation now. And all Sox rotation members come with a standard-issue Brian Bannister explanation of how their pitching style has been altered.

"I've been watching him since his Atlanta days, into Pittsburgh, into Milwaukee. We always felt like he was a little bit more of an east-west pitcher. He used to get a little higher with his arm slot and his breaking ball was more of a downer curveball instead of a sweeper and I think he's really also embracing the style that he's going to pitch best in. There's been subtle transformations in him even since we got him in spring training.

I know I was comfortable with him pitching again in a starting role even though he was doing well in a longer role. But he has the full arsenal. He's got some of the most service time we have out there right now. That's nice just because he doesn't get rattled. But being able to throw multiple shapes, handles righties and lefties and give us some length, that will be huge with Martín out."

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