Someone on the Chicago White Sox 40-man roster had to get designated for assignment to make room for Danny Mendick's return to the big leagues.
The veteran utility player is getting called up after tearing up Triple-A.
Danny Mendick is getting called up, just as @CST_soxvan reported. The 30-year-old had homered in five-straight Triple-A games and is 13-for-33 with 10 XBH in his last nine games at Charlotte.
— James Fegan (@JRFegan) April 22, 2024
You might remember Mendick from his solid 2022 season when he admirably filled in for an injured Tim Anderson. He had a .289/.343/.443 slash line that season before he was lost for the season with an injury. Mendick spent last season with the New York Mets before coming back to the White Sox organization as a non-roster invitee during spring training.
He lost the backup infielder role to Braden Shewmake. Now, he will probably split time with Shewmake at third base while Yoan Moncada is on the 60-day IL.
Mendick is not going to solve the Sox' offensive woes to start the season. The hope is he can carry some of that hot hitting he had in Charlotte to Minnesota when the Sox take on the Twins.
Also, the Sox needed a better option as Lenyn Sosa failed spectacularly with the opportunity he was given.
Sosa made three major defensive gaffes during last weekend's series against the Philadelphia Phillies. Sosa made a critical throwing error in the first inning during Sunday's loss that should be on a blooper reel showing a stadium near you.
Sosa also had a .132/.154/.184 slash line in 40 at-bats this season. He has a -8 wRC+ this season. A far cry from the projected 75 he was supposed to have this season. Even then, 75 is not a good wRC+ so that shows what kind of player he was projected to be.
Yet, he does not have to worry about his job security on the 40-man roster as he is being demoted to Charlotte.
Instead, it is Zach Remillard getting designated for assignment.
White Sox Expected To Designate Zach Remillard For Assignment https://t.co/iTtcdsgRrP pic.twitter.com/6BXLoxsUGw
— MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) April 22, 2024
This will be the second time in 2024 that Remillard has been DFA'd. Yes, it is a strange hill to die on when it comes to removing Zach from the 40-man.
He is not hitting at Triple-A, and he is 30. Here is the thing, Remillard did all right last year with a .252 average in 160 big-league at-bats. He is nothing more than a guy who can say he got some major-league at-bats. Not exactly something worthy of beating the drum to keep him on the 40-man. All you need to do is watch Sosa play and know he does not have it.
It should be Sosa who should spend the week wondering if he will be released.
Lenyn has shown during his small sample size at the majors that he cannot hit at the top level. He has a career .177 average and .504 OPS in 75 career games over three seasons.
He has 42 career hits with nine going for doubles and seven home runs. His career OPS+ is 38 and this year it is -2. Not only is he well below the league average of 100, but he is in Martin Maldonado territory.
The only difference is Maldonado can still offer some value by calling a game for the team's young starting pitchers.
Sosa makes blooper plays in the field and cannot hit big-league pitching. At least Remillard can produce some offense when called upon. Sosa is an automatic out.
Sosa was once one of the team's top prospects. Now he is just another failure in a long list of them when it comes to the White Sox developing talent.