For multiple seasons, it seemed like Oscar Colás could be spoken about in the past tense. Now, there's nothing rude about doing so, because the White Sox finally released him on Saturday.
It's weird to say "finally," but Colás experienced one of the stranger career arcs on the South Side. He went from Rick Hahn's Opening Day Plan A to Pedro Grifol's doghouse over the course of the 2023 season, and his inability to stick more or less spelled the end for Marco Paddy's international strategy of devoting seven-figure bonuses to advanced Cuban prospects.
But what made it weird was how long Colás hung around. He still spent all of 2024 on the 40-man roster -- including a couple of stints in Chicago where Grifol had to hold his nose to play him. He even remained on the 40-man up until Opening Day, but I ranked him the 49th most essential White Sox on the roster, even behind a guy who wasn't technically in the organization, to underscore the distance between him and any plans. The White Sox finally DFA'd him at the end of spring training, but then he cleared waivers, so the White Sox used him as an organizational outfielder. Colás more or less succumbed to the negligence, hitting just .163/.245/.255 over 110 plate appearances between Charlotte and Birmingham.
Round Rock 8, Charlotte 6
- Brooks Baldwin went 3-for-5 with another leadoff homer, a strikeout, and another CS.
- Colson Montgomery went off: 4-for-4 with two homers, two doubles and a walk.
- Andrew Vaughn did not: 0-for-4 with a walk, strikeout and error.
- Tim Elko was 1-for-5 with two strikeouts.
- Kyle Teel had a full house with two walks and three strikeouts.
- Bryan Ramos, 1-for-5.
- Mike Clevinger: 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HR, 1 WP, 44 of 78 pitches for strikes.
Highlights:
*Montgomery's night:
Birmingham 2, Pensacola 0
- William Bergolla went 3-for-5 with a stolen base.
- Ryan Galanie, 1-for-4 with a walk, strikeout and stolen base.
- Wilfred Veras was 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- DJ Gladney, 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Jacob Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a homer and two strikeouts.
- Noah Schultz walked the first two batters he faced before settling in: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K, 53 of 89 pitches for strikes.
Winston-Salem 5, Hudson Valley 4
- Jeral Perez was 0-for-3 with two walks and two strikeouts.
- Braden Montgomery went 1-for-4 with a double, walk and two strikeouts.
- Samuel Zavala was 1-for-3 with a double and an HBP.
Kannapolis 6, Columbia 5
- Abraham Nuñez went 1-for-4 with a double, walk and a strikeout.
- Ronny Hernandez was 2-for-4 with a double and a strikeout.
- Ryan Burrowes was 0-for-3 with a sac bunt and a strikeout.
- George Wolkow, 1-for-4.
- Lyle Miller-Green was 1-for-4 with a walk.
- Luis Reyes: 4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 44 of 69 pitches for strikes.
- Blake Shepardson: 1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 1 HBP, 11 of 21 pitches for strikes.
ACL White Sox 3, ACL Rangers 2 (10 innings)
- Adrian Gíl went 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
- T.J. McCants was 0-for-3 with a walk, two strikeouts and a stolen base.
- Jurdrick Profar, 1-for-4 with a strikeout and two stolen bases.
