After many questioned whether or not the White Sox would some noise at the trade deadline, the answer to that question is yes – sort of. While the moves today don’t involve any other teams, they have still managed to create plenty of buzz inside a fanbase that’s clinging to hope of what’s to come. In the biggest headline of the day, the organization has reportedly promoted their fifth ranked prospect Nick Madrigal to Triple-A Charlotte after an overall impressive 2019 campaign.
Sources tell The Athletic that former No. 4 overall pick Nick Madrigal is headed to Triple-A Charlotte
— James Fegan (@JRFegan) July 31, 2019
As you may remember, Madrigal spent the first 49 games of his season in High-A Winston-Salem where he hit .272/.346/.377 with 2 home runs, 10 doubles, 2 triples, 27 RBI, and 17 stolen bases. After enough was enough, he was promoted to Double-A Birmingham on June 5th where he still hasn’t stopped tearing the cover off the ball. In 42 games, he’s slashed .341/.400/.451 with a home run, 11 doubles, an .851 OPS, and 14 more stolen bases. There’s nothing that can seem to stop the “Magic Man” from producing.
Make it 1⃣4⃣ straight games with a hit for the Magic Man! ???
Nick Madrigal announces his return from the Futures Game with this RBI single!
Barons go ahead 2-1 in the fifth ?#BuiltInBham | #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/h8WrQP1En2
— Birmingham Barons (@BhamBarons) July 10, 2019
With just a month to spare before the highly speculated September call-ups, this begs the serious question of whether or not we’ll see the second baseman in Chicago this season. I am still skeptical enough about Luis Robert getting a promotion, let alone Madrigal. With Robert though, the numbers the organization’s top prospect are putting up in Charlotte show that he’s more than capable of making the leap as soon as today. He’s taking mere batting practice on a nightly basis down there. In the case of Madrigal, I think the White Sox will be more patient, perhaps letting him ride out the year with the Knights to see how he performs. Even if he does well at the Triple-A level, there’s the possibility the club waits until next spring to give Madrigal his first taste of the majors.
Do I agree with being patient? Not quite. If the White Sox are serious about contending in 2020, or at least moving closer to contention by being an above .500 team, then I believe both Luis Robert and Nick Madrigal should see time on the South Side before the year is over. You should allow these two guys to get acclimated to the major league level, work out some growing pains now rather than later, and give fans a reason to stay engaged with the team amidst another losing, yet improving season. The same statement holds true for Dylan Cease, who has battled through some struggles since his promotion while also learning what he needs to work on for next year. Really, what is there to lose from this? The team is not competing for a wild card so give the kids a shot.
As part of this string of moves, the White Sox also promoted 2019 first rounder and third ranked prospect Andrew Vaughn to High-A Winston-Salem. Vaughn, who’s been following a very similar trajectory as Madrigal, spent his past 23 games in Kannapolis where he hit .253/.388/.410 with 2 home runs, 7 doubles, 11 RBI, and owned a .798 OPS. While these numbers aren’t eye popping per se, Vaughn becomes the fifth first rounder in the last six years to reach High-A in the same year as being drafted, with the recent exception being Jake Burger. In a corresponding roster move, third baseman Zach Remillard was promoted to Double-A Birmingham. The Carolina League All-Star finished his 2019 Winston-Salem stint with a .289/.358/.378 slash in 95 games.
Look at where Andrew Vaughn’s first home run with @WSDashBaseball landed pic.twitter.com/geelzKqSpN
— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) July 31, 2019
As you can see, there’s a lot going on within the White Sox organization despite an otherwise quiet trade deadline for the team.
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Featured Photo: Birmingham Barons (Twitter)
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