Another Chicago White Sox pitching prospect gets a well-deserved September call-up

Nick Nastrini struggled with his command during his third tour of duty with the Chicago White Sox this season. That means he is on his way back to Triple-A Charlotte.

Sean Burke is the next prospect pitcher to show what he can do late in the season.

He was the pitcher the club selected to bring up to replace Nastrini on the 26-man roster.

Burke said he has been told he will be in the bullpen tonight but will eventually get a start. This will need a starter this Sunday so it would make sense for him to get some work tonight and then pitch against Oakland.

Burke is 24 and is ranked as the Sox' No. 29 prospect according to MLB Pipeline. Injuries limited him to nine starts last year at Triple-A Charlotte.

He has had a solid season at Charlotte despite a 4.62 ERA. Charlotte's ballpark is like throwing at the minor-league version of Coors Field. Opponents are hitting .199 of him this season.

Nastrini is going back to the Knights after struggling with his command during his third opportunity in the big leagues.

Nastrini looked great in his return to the majors against the Texas Rangers when he pitched six strong innings.

Then the command issues came back as he issued 10 walks in his past two outings that lasted a combined five innings. He followed up that outstanding start against the Rangers as he lasted just 1.2 innings, allowed seven runs as four of them were earned, and walked six.

That earned him getting demoted to the bullpen where he walked four more batters in a 3.1 innings last night.

That means Burke will get a shot to show what he can do in the rotation as he will likely be jockeying for the fifth starter spot next year with Nastrini and fellow prospects, Jairo Iriarte, Ky Bush and Mason Adams.

Bush got a shot a few weeks ago and he too had issues with his command on a big-league mound. Iriarte is throwing out of the bullpen this month for the Sox. He too has to work on his command as he has issued six free passes in three outings.

Being able to command the baseball the rest of the month and in spring training is probably going to determine who wins a starting rotation job next season. That is if the front office does not get tempted and bring in a veteran pitcher to take away precious big-league development innings.