Pregame notes: Backup catcher shuffle

The White Sox decision-making process, from player acquisition to development to usage, is so much more coherent and unified now, that most of their moves wind up making more sense by default. But just because everyone in the organization quickly falls in line and gets on the same page, doesn't protect them from some head-scratcher calls.

On Saturday morning, the Sox designated Reese McGuire for assignment--roughly a month after they signed him to a major league deal at the end of spring training--and selected the contract of Drew Romo, a former 35th overall pick whom they claimed off waivers in January, but had also DFA'd to clear a 40-man roster spot a week ahead of spring training opening. Romo cleared waivers, spent the spring in big league camp, got off to a hot start offensively with Charlotte (.298/.385/.561) and now is in a position to benefit from his resolve.

"I’m very grateful," said Romo, who can't be accused of underselling this point. "Coming into spring training I was just presented with a great opportunity. It’s been a great environment so far with Chicago. And in spring, meeting the staff, teammates and coaches, it was great. They all put me in a great position to succeed, develop and grow and the season’s been great for me so far."

Kyle Teel's absence of six weeks and counting from a right hamstring strain suffered in the World Baseball Classic enhanced the focus on the Sox' third catcher situation more than intended, but at this point the only through-line in their choices seems to be not Korey Lee. Like Edgar Quero, Romo is a switch-hitter who is best against lefties, which the Sox' own press release highlighted (.421/.500/.684 in a tiny sample this year in Triple-A), lending to the idea that he would pair best with a healthy Teel. But Will Venable said this move was all about the here and now.

"It's really independent of Kyle," Venagle said."We're sitting here, almost a month into the season and really haven't gotten a ton out of that spot. So I think as we're continuing to find ways to improve, and continuing to find ways to improve our roster that taking a look at that position specifically and finding a way to at least explore a potential upgrade, I think it's an important thing to do."

White Sox catching is indeed dead last in MLB in wins above replacement (B-Ref and FanGraphs), which is the sort of performance that merits a response. And staying consistent with a surprising decision to obtain McGuire in the first place certainly wasn't an affirmative case for keeping him.

McGuire framed as well as the Sox said he would, and his raw pop times weren't as bad as basestealers being 15-for-15 against him would suggest, but he now has a combined .217/.263/.267 batting line in a White Sox uniform. As someone who has covered both of his South Side tenures, McGuire's occasional offensive hot streaks with the Red Sox and Cubs have been some real testament to the axiom that you can't predict baseball. Romo has been playing better than Lee at Charlotte and simply trying something new seems better than sticking with McGuire, so here we are.

But the central issue with Sox catching production is that Quero's slugging percentage starts with a 1, along with framing and blocking that is near the bottom of the league--though the former is a little better than last year. The catching production issue is pressing, but not enough for the Sox to abandon having either of their of their long-term solutions at the position getting major league reps. Teel still can't run at full effort without discomfort, so as much as they're willing to shuffle the deck behind him, the Sox are still resolved to working Quero through the worst stretch of his pro career to date.

"He's a guy that can be critical of himself and hard on himself, but we're going to continue to throw him out there and continue to help develop his overall game," Getz said on Friday.

Sure enough, Quero is in there on Saturday.

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--With a pre-game pub crawl, a giveaway item, Noah Schultz on the bump and a Saturday mid-afternoon start time, the Sox are expecting north of 30,000 in the stands.

--Venable said catcher playing time will be primarily about offensive matchups, which is something to hold him to going forward.

"From Day 1, we committed to not necessarily lining up catchers and pitchers," Venable said. "It just kind of ends up putting you in a box, and all of these catchers are going to have to catch all of our pitchers, and you have to build those relationships individually. So it will not be driven by that."

--Even if he's not catching him on Saturday, Romo already offered a great line about what stands out most about Schultz:

"His height."

First pitch: White Sox vs. Nationals

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