The White Sox scratched top catching prospect Kyle Teel from today’s Triple-A lineup and plan to promote him to the majors, reports Chris Cotillo of MassLive. The team has not made the move official, but the social media account for TeelsBaseball — a training facility run by his father Garett — has announced the call-up. Chicago will need to select his contract and make corresponding moves for the active and 40-man rosters.
It’s an exciting day for White Sox fans. Teel was the centerpiece of the Garrett Crochet return. (Chase Meidroth was the first prospect from the group to debut and has played his way to everyday work in the middle infield.) Boston’s first-round pick in 2023, Teel has ranked among the sport’s most talented catching prospects throughout his time in pro ball.
The University of Virginia product was essentially the consensus #4 prospect in the Red Sox’s system. He was behind Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer but was viewed as one of the sport’s 50 or so best minor leaguers in his own right. Teel ranked between 32nd and 52nd on the preseason lists at MLB Pipeline, ESPN and Baseball America. He slotted 42nd on BA’s most recent in-season update, which came out this week.
Baseball America now ranks Teel as the White Sox’s #2 prospect and their top position player talent. The left-handed hitter has a well-rounded profile that gives him a good chance to be a long-term starter behind the plate. He has been particularly good offensively throughout his minor league career. Teel has a .300/.401/.456 batting line in pro ball. He has kept up a similar pace during his first season in the Chicago system.
Teel has played 50 games this year with Triple-A Charlotte. He carries a .295/.394/.492 slash with eight home runs through 213 plate appearances. As he has throughout his career, he’s taking free passes at an excellent 14.1% clip. Teel has struck out a little more than a quarter of the time, but the overall production has been strong. He was on fire throughout the past month, hitting .333/.444/.613 in May after posting a .626 OPS in April.
There isn’t a whole lot left for Teel to prove against minor league pitching. He’ll probably strike out a decent amount in the majors, but his plate discipline should give him a solid on-base floor. The Sox are certainly going to have him in the lineup on most days, though it’ll be interesting to see how they deploy him defensively. Scouting reports suggest he’s a solid defensive catcher.
The Sox already have a touted rookie catcher in Edgar Quero, who began the season playing alongside Teel in Charlotte. He and Korey Lee are splitting the work behind the plate. The switch-hitting Quero isn’t hitting for any power, but he’s batting .250 with a .341 on-base percentage in 37 games. He has hit at every minor league stop and deserves continued playing time. Lee is unlikely to be more than a long-term backup, but the White Sox probably won’t want to carry only two rookie catchers.
Teel said this week that he has begun taking first base drills. He has not played anywhere other than catcher in a minor league game. Teel could mix in at first base, where the Sox have gotten nothing all season. They’ll probably also use both rookie catchers somewhat frequently at designated hitter. That’d push Andrew Benintendi into more of a full-time left field role while cutting the playing time for journeyman outfielder Joshua Palacios.
As a consensus Top 100 talent, Teel meets the eligibility for the Prospect Promotion Incentive. That means he could earn a full service year if he finished in the top two in AL Rookie of the Year balloting. The A’s Jacob Wilson may have already locked up one of those spots, but there’s at least an outside chance for Teel to play well enough to get consideration for the other. The White Sox would not receive a bonus draft choice if that happens because they didn’t promote him early enough to spend 172 days in the majors. If he doesn’t earn the full service year, Teel will remain under club control for at least six seasons beyond this one. He likely wouldn’t reach arbitration eligibility until the 2028-29 offseason.
Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images.