With Spring Training underway, we are officially unveiling our 2024 preseason White Sox Top 30 prospects list! This season, we have more White Sox prospects to highlight than we have in a while, so this week we will break down every prospect you need to know about heading into the 2024 season.
First up, let’s take a look at the pitching prospects in the White Sox organization who weren’t able to crack the top 30, but are still names to keep an eye on this season and beyond.
Mason Adams
Mason Adams gained a lot of fans in scouting circles during the 2023 season with a strong showing across three levels, ending his season with a brief stint with the Double-A Birmingham Barons. A 13th-round draft pick in 2022, Adams has exceeded expectations with his performance so far with a 3.14 ERA and a 4.31 K/BB rate through the 2023 season. He is capable of becoming an MLB pitcher soon if he can sustain the success he has displayed so far in his career.
There aren’t many pitchers in this entire organization that possess the pure stuff that Adler brings to the mound. His arsenal includes an upper 90’s fastball and both a curveball and slider that are plus, that is when he can control them. Command has always been the biggest question with Adler, as he struggled with walks in college. Since turning pro, he has appeared to clean up those issues a bit, and while he can stand to limit his walks further still, he has honed it to the point where he has been an effective relief pitcher who generates plenty of strikeouts. If he continues to develop on this trajectory, he has high leverage, maybe even closer, potential.
Acquired for international bonus slot money last season, Batista was a strikeout machine for the Dodgers Arizona Complex team, fanning 54 batters in just 39 innings. He didn’t post quite the same numbers after the Sox acquired him and promoted him to Low-A Kannapolis, but he still held a 2.66 ERA and seemed to have decent control in his 23.2 innings at the level.
Juan Carela was acquired from the New York Yankees in the Keynan Middleton trade. While this is seen as a smaller move than the other trades the Sox made last season, Carela should not be overlooked. Last season at the High-A level, Carela posted a 10.50 K/9 rate and held a 3.58 ERA in 115.2 innings between the Yankees and White Sox affiliates. He has had no issues missing bats and limiting opposing lineups so far in his young career. His velocity is a bit of a concern, topping out at around 93, and his stuff overall isn’t seen as overwhelming, but so far he has been able to be very successful with what he has.
Jared Kelley’s career trajectory has taken numerous twists and turns, but it appears he might have finally figured out a role that suits him. With the High-A Winston-Salem Dash, Kelley transitioned into a multi-inning reliever role, and his production took a noticeable upward trend. He looked so much improved that the Sox decided to test him out in his newfound role at the Double-A level. Kelley still possesses the talent that had many project him as a first-round pick back in 2020, and a condensed role appears to be allowing him to tap into his plus stuff more than ever in his professional career. He also appears to be in the best shape of his life heading into the 2024 season.
Mathias LaCombe
A 12th-round pick who signed for $450,00 in 2023, Mathias LaCombe is a French-born right-hander who pitched for Team France in the World Baseball Classic last year. He logged one inning where he struck out two and gave up one run in his lone appearance there. LaCombe is 21 years old and posted a 1.74 ERA in 67.1 innings pitched and struck out 97 batters while only walking 14 for Cochise College. His anticipated professional debut will take place in 2024, likely with the Low-A Kannapolis Cannonballers.
Acquired along with Aldrin Batista from the Dodgers, Martinez has shown intriguing flashes despite only pitching in the complex leagues thus far. His fastball was hitting the upper 90s when he was just 18 years old and seemed to excel at missing bats. He also has a curveball that has a lot of movement and has used a slider and a changeup as well. Unfortunately, elbow injuries have derailed his career, and he hasn’t even had a chance to pitch for the Sox since they acquired him. When he returns to the mound, however, he will be a name to watch.
As a 14th-round pick from the 2022 draft class, Shane Murphy has had a rock-solid start to his professional career. He didn’t pitch much in 2022, but in 2023, he was able to keep his ERA in the mid-3s while averaging just over 9 K/9 and limiting his walks. He is already 23, so he is a bit advanced for the levels he has played at, but if he can keep up his success in 2024, where he is expected to face more advanced levels of competition, his stock could rise quickly.
A 5th-round pick for the Sox in 2022, Schweitzer had to wait until 2023 for his professional debut where he dominated the Low-A level. He eventually got the call up to High-A Winston-Salem, where he missed plenty of bats but struggled with his command and saw his results dip a bit. He projects as someone who may be better suited for a bullpen role, but the Sox will give him every chance to stick in the rotation, as they should.
The Sox picked Speas up in late September after he was DFA’d by the Rangers. While he has struggled with command throughout his career, his stuff is considered plus to double plus. His fastball can touch triple digits and has a lot of life, and he also possesses both a slider and a cutter that are considered to be plus pitches. He struck out 85 batters in just 56.2 innings last season in the minors, though he also walked 38. In his brief two-inning stint at the major league level, he gave up three runs and walked 5 batters, but also struck out 4.
While he has shown some flashes of the potential that made him a 2nd round pick in 2019, Thompson has yet to put together a full season of consistent results. Injuries have played a role, but even when healthy he hasn’t quite lived up to expectations. With his injury history and consistency issues taken into account, a move to the bullpen could be better suited for him to allow his above-average stuff to play up.
Luis Reyes was the prize of the White Sox 2023 international signing class. Ranked 41st in MLB Pipeline’s top international prospects, Reyes was inked to a $700,000 signing bonus, tied for the largest in the Sox 2023 class. The 6’3 right-handed pitcher got off to a rough start last season in the DSL but looked much more like what the White Sox envisioned him to be from July through the rest of the season. He has been able to miss plenty of bats with his plus fastball and promising secondary pitches, and while he has struggled with walks, he has a smooth delivery that he should be able to repeat well and hone in his command.
Coming into the 2022 season, it was almost unanimous that Norge Vera was the best pitching prospect in the White Sox organization. Fast forward a couple of years, and he is almost an afterthought now. Injuries are the main culprit of Vera’s downfall, as he only logged 35.1 innings in 2022. Then in 2023, he made just a handful of shaky appearances. He still possesses an effortless delivery that generates high velocities on his fastball and above-average breaking pitches. Unfortunately, until he can stay on the mound he will never be able to develop into the pitcher many thought he could become. At some point, a move to the bullpen could be in play.
Follow along as we continue to unveil the rest of the top 30 White Sox prospects list throughout the week! Tomorrow, we will release the position players who just missed the cut, but deserve an honorable mention.
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Featured Image: @Kcannonballers / X
Didn’t Matthew Thopmson get traded?