MLB dot com released a great piece on one prospect from each team in the American League Central that ready for Major League Baseball. Every team in the division has some really good prospects that they are excited about. The Chicago White Sox are right there in terms of excitement with some of their guys. Players like Andrew Vaughn, Nick Madrigal, Michael Kopech, and Garrett Crochet were all at the top of the White Sox top-prospects list to start the season but are now on the Major League roster full-time so they won’t count for something like this.
The Chicago White Sox sure has a lot of great young talent in the organization.
So who comes after those guys? The Major League team is almost fully ready based on the vision Rick Hahn had early in his rebuilding process. Well, the article by Anne Rogers named Yoelqui Cespedes as the White Sox top guy that is ready for the big leagues. It was an interesting pick but it makes total sense. He is going to be someone who plays in their outfield one day and has a chance to do so at a high level.
Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert are out for now but they will be back and better than ever. That leaves right-field open for Cespedes to take once Adam Eaton is gone. Cespedes claimed during Spring Training that he wants to make a jump to the MLB this year and that came before the big injury bug. It is possible but it may not happen in 2021.
However, if it does happen in 2021, the White Sox might really benefit. He was the number one international free agent prospect at the time of his signing so you know he has some skills. If he believes that there is a chance, it is hard to discredit that. It is even harder to call it impossible now that they are so injured for so long. If he is ready, don’t be too surprised if the team moves him up from double-A before the season is over.
In the long term, having someone like this in the organization could be extremely beneficial. He is a highly regarded prospect that could be one of their core players in the future. There is even a chance that he is considered their number one prospect by the start of the 2022 season. There might be other prospects that aren’t already in the big leagues that are more likely to be called up but few would have the same impact as Yoelqui Cespedes.
Of course, there are four other teams in the division so four other prospects were mentioned as well. Bobby Bradley (1B) of the Cleveland Indians, Daniel Lynch (LHP) of the Kansas City Royals, Matt Manning (RHP) of the Detroit Tigers, and Edwar Colina (RHP) of the Minnesota Twins are the other players that are considered to be future impact players. All of these guys are awesome and will see plenty of the White Sox in their future.
We saw the Chicago White Sox tear their team down and build it back up successfully. Now, the key to sustained success is keeping the Minor League system strong while the Major League team wins as well. Landing big-time prospects like Cespedes is a great start. The idea of seeing him make an impact in a White Sox uniform sure is exciting.