White Sox Minor Keys: Aug. 1, 2026

A little more than six years after they gave him the highest bonus of any second-round pick, the White Sox released Jarred Kelley.

Kelley, the 47th pick back in 2020, received $3 million from the Sox as part of a top-heavy strategy for the five-round draft, but the hard-throwing righty never found professional traction, as his velocity backed up and his control never improved. He managed to appear in 144 games since 2021, but he spent the last few seasons as an organization pithcer,. rotating through three levels based on need. Kelley finished the White Sox portion of his career with a 5.31 ERA and 291 strikeouts to 205 walks over 286⅓ innings.

In defense of everybody involved, the 2020 draft seems to reflect the evaluation challenges stemming from the shortened or lost seasons, and the eventual success of first-round pick Garrett Crochet might end up making him the most successful draft pick for the team that held the selection. Pete Crow-Armstrong is the best player of the bunch overall, but the Mets traded him to the Cubs for Javier Báez. The idea is that Braden Montgomery, Kyle Teel and Chase Meidroth will be able to lap that production many, many many times over.

Nashville 6, Charlotte 3

• Rikuu Nishida was 1-for-3 with a double, two walks and a strikeout.
• Ryan Galanie went 2-for-4 with a walk, strikeout and CS.
• Eric Haase was 1-for-4 with a strikeout.
• Hagen Smith struck out the only batter he faced on three pitches in a mid-inning appearance.
• Tanner McDougal: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 9 of 15 pitches for strikes.

Chattanooga 4, Birmingham 1

• Boston Smith was plunked, stole a base and scored the Barons' lone run before he was lifted due to the trade.
• Anthony DePino went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in his stead.
• Caleb Bonemer was 0-for-2 with three walks, a strikeout and a stolen base.
• James Taussig was 0-for-4 with a walk and three strikeouts in his Double-A debut.
• Ryan Burrowes, 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
• Samuel Zavala went 0-for-4 with a K.
• Gabe Davis: 3 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 HR
• Shane Murphy is back in Birmingham: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 55 of 83 pitches for strikes.

Notes:

*The Barons drew 10 walks along with the Smith HBP, but only had one hit, going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and stranding 13.

Winston-Salem 6, Brooklyn 3

• Nick McLain went 2-for-4 with a walk.
• Javier Mogollón was 0-for-3 with two walks and a strikeout.
• George Wolkow went 1-for-5 with a K.
• Kyle Lodise, 2-for-5 with two strikeouts.
• Jeral Perez, 1-for-5.
• Max Banks: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HR, 25 of 40 pitches for strikes.

Kannapolis 8, Salem 5

• Jaden Fauske went 2-for-5 with a stolen base.
• Alexander Albertus was 0-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base.
• Matthew Boughton, 1-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout.
• Braden Holcomb had the best debut of the day, going 1-for-3 with a homer and two walks.
• Christian Gonzalez, 2-for-4 with a double, walk and strikeout.

Highlights:

*The estimated distance of Holcomb's homer was 461 feet. That seems like a lot, but the gasps were audible.

DSL Pirates Black 6, DSL White Sox 4 (Game 1, 7 innings)

• Carlos Vielma went 1-for-3 with a walk.
• Fernando Graterol, 0-for-2 with two walks, a strikeout and a stolen base.
• Sebastian Romero went 1-for-4 with a strikeout.
• Ronald Cardozo, 1-for-4.
• Felix Lebron was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
• Samuel Luis went 2-for-3 with a double and a stolen base.
• Enmanuel Rodríguez: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
• Franchel Crisóstomo: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 5 BB, 4 K, 1 HBP, 2 WP

DSL Pirates Black 7, DSL White Sox 4 (Game 2, 7 innings)

• Fernando Graterol went 1-for-4 with a stolen base.
• Sebastian Romero, 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
• Ronald Cardozo singled, struck out twice and got plunked.
• Felix Lebron went 2-for-4.
• Samuel Luis singled, walked twice, struck out once and got picked off/caught stealing.
• Yordany Marte: 0.2 IP,. 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 2 WP