The Chicago White Sox lineup usually is not very interesting. Frustrating, but not interesting.
However, the batting order the White Sox are rolling out against the Milwaukee Brewers has provided another clue that is unlikely hot-hitting prospect Tim Elko will be getting called up anytime soon.
The White Sox are rolling with Gage Workman at third base, Miguel Vargas at first base, and Andrew Vaughn at DH. That might be a lineup the team rolls with if the club wants to get a good look at Workman, especially since they must keep him on the roster based on his Rule 5 draft status.
Workman can play short, but his best defensive position is at third base (despite looking terrible at the position during his brief Cubs tenure). At the same time, the team does not want to take Vargas out of the lineup since he is swinging a hot bat after making a swing adjustment.
Since the team still refuses to give Andrew Vaughn the Spencer Torkelson treatment, and Vargas is better defensively, moving Vaughn to DH is the only spot to still get him at-bats.
That means if the Sox decide to give Workman a lot of appearances, there is no room for Elko on the big-league roster right now.
That is just sad.
Well, it is not sad to take a look at Workman. Acquiring him is worth it since it costs nothing, and the whole point of this season is to give runway to future pieces for the next competitive team.
It is sad that Getz is citing Vaughn having a hard luck, and the team still loves him despite Andrew being off to a terrible start for the second straight season. It is even more frustrating because Elko is on a heater while Vaughn has provided nothing but replacement-level play over his entire career.
Elko may just be another Matt Davidson, but that production would be better than what Vaughn has provided the past two seasons.
Yet, Elko's eye-popping OPS will remain at Charlotte for the foreseeable future.
Even worse, Getz gave Elko the vague praise a general manager gives to a player that you can tell the team is not exactly excited about.
It just feels like the organization views Elko as organizational depth and nothing more. Yet, the team still clings to hope that Vaughn will live up to the hype that made him the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft.
About the only card the organization has left to play to get Vaughn going is what the Tigers did with Spencer Torkelson last season, and that is to demote Andrew. However, it sounds like that is the last thing the organization wants to do.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to see if Workman can be a big-league player, given he is more versatile than Elko and can hit from the left side of the plate. To work him in, it also means on days the team does not put him at short, Workman plays third, and Vargas goes to first with Vaughn designated hitting.
That means there is no room on the roster for Elko's hot bat, even though this offense could use as much power as it can.