It’s time for the White Sox to push the chips in on their prospects
If you listen to the adoring reportage of their coverage media, the White Sox are excited about the future. In reality, the Sox are hesitant to embrace its new core group of players fully. While Chase Meidroth, Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero, and Grant Taylor have successfully gone from being high-profile prospects to impactful major-leaguers this season, Brooks Baldwin is still considered a Triple-A fixture.
Baldwin has undeservingly ping-ponged between Charlotte and Chicago three times in the past 30 days. He is close to playing more games with the Knights than Sox despite holding a better slash line than Joshua Palacios (.203/.292/.305), Josh Rojas (.185/.262/.231), and Andrew Vaughn (.184/.214/.316). Somehow, Baldwin (.211/.252/.323 with the White Sox) has played nearly the same number of Triple-A games as the other three players combined while demonstrating better hitting and — at worst — similar defense.
What’s even worse is the Sox justified each of Baldwin’s roster moves with a corresponding injury or position opening. For his first option to Triple-A on May 19, the Sox activated Austin Slater from the 10-day IL. Then on June 13 for his recall, Baldwin took Tim Elko’s spot, who was slashing .148/.258/.296 in eight June games. Once Lenyn Sosa was back from the 10-day IL, they booked Baldwin another ticket to Triple-A.
Baldwin’s tenure on the Sox this year has been a one-way street, with the focus on Chicago’s position gaps. Rather than show a commitment to his growth and success, the Sox have given roster priority to slumping veterans who are seat-fillers in 2025 — and not particularly skilled ones, at that. Growing pains are a natural part of player development, and no one can expect Baldwin to improve if he’s jolted back and forth so often.
Luis Robert Jr.’s retroactive placement on the 10-day IL allows Baldwin the opportunity to get some extra reps at center field, but signs aren’t promising we’ll see Brooks again, as the Sox have yet to fill their 26th active roster spot. Maybe the Sox are waiting until they trade Robert or Andrew Benintendi, or even Mike Tauchman, who recently placed third in the AL DH All-Star first ballot fan vote. In that case, there’s hardly any benefit to keeping Palacios or Rojas on the bench in Chicago over Baldwin.
Chicago needs to remember that 2025 is a rebuilding year, and the emphasis should be on giving young, newer players at-bats over veterans who can’t bat above the Mendoza Line. If the Sox truly want to commit to the future, they’ll field a team of guys who will be around in three years — not just those who have more service time.