Pregame notes: White Sox trying yet another Edgar Quero replacement

By taking Edgar Quero's place on the White Sox 26-man roster, Jake Rogers has no idea what forces he's messing with.

The first two times Quero was optioned to Charlotte this season, an injury to his replacement prompted his return. The White Sox sent him down in late June to make room for Kyle Teel, but Teel only lasted 19 games before a high ankle sprain sent him back to the injured list. Quero then returned to Triple-A in early August after the White Sox acquired Joey Bart from the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline, but an errant pitch broke a bone in Bart's hand just two games in, and so Quero's second minor league stint lasted just three days.

Now here comes Rogers, fresh off a claim from the Red Sox. The 31-year-old makes his White Sox debut this afternoon with the hope of bringing experience behind the plate and occasional spasms of production against left-handed pitching. Let's see how long he lasts before Quero summons the spirits to strike him down.

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Unfortunately, Rogers won't be facing a lefty. Instead, he'll have the pleasure of squaring off against his former batterymate Troy Melton, whose 1.46 ERA is the lowest of any pitcher with at least 80 MLB innings to his name this season.

Melton comes into this one with a 7-1 record over 13 games. He's holding hitters to a .171/.241/.300 line against him, and he hasn't allowed an earned run in his last three starts, which covers 20 innings. He's muzzled the White Sox in his first two starts against them this season, holding them to two runs on seven hits and four walks over 13 innings.

You'd think he'd be susceptible to some form of regression, whether it's because he's struck out just 69 batters over 80 innings, or because he's limiting hitters to a .196 BABIP, which is also the lowest of any pitcher with an equal or greater sample size. Then again, he does a great job of staying off the barrel, and part of the reason the strikeout total doesn't impress is because he isn't facing that many extra batters, which limits his chances.

Eno Sarris just posted a video where Melton showed off some of his grips, so if he once again stymies the White Sox, you'll have a better idea of how he did it.

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Congratulations to Corey Julks, whose 72 games played with 100-loss White Sox teams the last two seasons won't count as his last word in Major League Baseball. He joined the Tigers earlier this week as a replacement for Riley Greene, and today he'll make his first MLB start since his cameo with the White Sox during the final days of the 2025 season.

Julks, 30, kept himself in play by hitting .272/.346/.452 over 87 games at Triple-A Toledo. Julks, Julks, Julks.

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First Pitch: White Sox at Tigers

TV: CHSN

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