White Sox: Hot and Not, Players to Watch For 2018 Season
By Jeff Shirk
Take your pick here. The Castillo signing clearly establishes him as the top catcher, and I don’t believe the team will break camp with three catchers so one will have to take a plane to Charlotte. Think this may simply come down to which has a better spring. That said, it might be really strategic to send the one down who would best help develop Kopech, Hanson and the other Knights pitching prospects. They could then potentially follow them up to the big league club later in the season, especially if Castillo is dealt before the deadline for more prospects.
No dis on Engel here. I just think it makes sense to hedge the bet on Tilson above and sign someone who can offer depth as either a starter or backup. Leury Garcia stays unless he’s dealt, which I think generally is unlikely, so Engle would be the odd man out if the club pursues veteran help in center field. Actually, some time honing the hitting skills that showed up so well in the 2016 Arizona Fall League might really make some sense.
I never really understood this Rule 5 draft pick last year and just assumed that Don Cooper or someone else saw something in or knew something about Covey. I didn’t see it. Some raved about his first AFL start this past fall, but the performance didn’t increase his stock greatly to me so I’m still struggling to get it.
Next: Bold Predictions for Upcoming Winter Meetings
Maybe the move was entirely developmental, meaning the team didn’t mind keeping him on the roster all year because the expectation wasn’t performance based but rule-driven and now the developmental work will begin down on the farm. Not certain actually, I’m just a fan, but I don’t see significant contribution here in 2018 at least at the major league level.