Colson Montgomery's slow start to the season at Triple-A has caused the Chicago White Sox front office to pull him from game action.
Although general manager Chris Getz has described this decision as all part of the development process.
Getz announced that the team's second-highest ranked position prospect is going to Arizona for a week or two to work on his swing with the team's director of hitting, Ryan Fuller.
Montgomery's April production has been a cause for concern.
The team was banking on him winning the starting job out of spring training. When a back injury caused Montgomery to miss some time, the team decided to send him to Triple-A Charlotte.
The hope was that the strong September and Arizona Fall League he had last season, along with some offseason swing adjustments, would allow him to have a strong April for the Knights. Then the belief was he would be the starting shortstop by May or June.
Instead, he has .149/.223/.255 slash line with 43 strikeouts in 23 games. This is on top of the overall terrible 2024 season he had in Charlotte when he hit .214 with a .710 OPS despite the Knights playing in a hitter-friendly ballpark.
Instead of continuing to work through his struggles at Charlotte, Getz has decided to send him to the team's spring training facility to make some swing adjustments.
The feeling is that it is better to have him work with Fuller without having to deal with game action right away, as Montgomery tinkers with his swing.
It is an interesting decision considering the team just tinkered with Miguel Vargas' swing at the big-league level, and it is producing results.
However, maybe Fuller made the call that is better to work with the equipment the team has at their Glendale facility.
Plus, this is why the White Sox brought in Fuller from the Baltimore Orioles--to help develop the team's young hitting prospects. Having Montgomery work in the Arizona air where he has had some success, might also rebuild up the young man's confidence.
However, it is not a good look for the team's former first-round pick to be pulled from game action and sent back to the spring training facility. It is even worse when the team keeps trotting out Miguel Amaya to play shortstop at the big-league level, where his average is well south of .100.
The White Sox have been so desperate for production at the plate from the shortstop position that they have tried Bobby Dalbec there.
The team could choose to play Brooks Baldwin or Chase Meidroth at short when he comes off the 10-day IL. However, the team's outfield has been ravaged by injuries that the Sox need Baldwin to man left or right field on most nights. Meidroth's best defensive position is at second base.
The hope is that Fuller can work his magic like he did in Baltimore and get Montgomery going. If Colson can rediscover his stroke, he has the potential to mash a lot of home runs at Rate Field.