The Chicago White Sox started the season off to what seemed to be a promising start giving fans the hope that maybe things would be different, but sadly, the Sox came back down to earth rather quickly.
The Sox have dropped four of their last five games and have been outscored 28-10 during their four-game losing streak.
The White Sox's best player to begin the year is Andrew Benintendi, who leads them in all major categories to start the season and is riding a five-game hitting streak.
Benintendi can't be the sole source of the White Sox offense and could use some help. The White Sox have two guys down at Charlotte, who are providing the Knights' offense when they should be up with the Sox helping them win as many games as possible.
Two White Sox prospects are off to a hot start down at Charlotte.
Given the White Sox are scuffling and are likely to lose 100 games again this season, it’s time for the Sox to start calling up their prospects and “letting the kids play”, as Major League Baseball likes to say.
Two of the White Sox's top prospects, catcher Kyle Teel and infielder Chase Meidroth, are slugging down at Triple-A Charlotte, and they should be up with the big-league club generating runs for the Sox instead of the Knights.
Teel, the Sox's No. 2 ranked prospect, started his season off hot, being the Knights's main run producer and winning the International League’s Player of the Week award for his hot start.
In the small sample size to start the year, Teel is hitting .267/.371/.533 for an OPS of .906 and making good use of the home run ball, hitting two in his 30 at-bats.
Teel’s teammate Chase Meidroth is also off to a hot start, utilizing the long ball to his advantage, hitting two home runs in the six games he's played in to begin the year.
Meidroth is also doing what he does best, which is getting on base, as he's posting a .407 on-base percentage and walking more than he's struck out (his MO), walking five times while striking out four times in 21 at-bats (27 plate appearances).
Sergio Santos, manager of the Knights, has been using Meidroth in the leadoff role while putting Teel in the cleanup spot to be the Knights's run producer.
The Chicago White Sox should embrace their youth and play their young guys.
Since Teel and Meidroth are producing down in Charlotte and the White Sox offense is struggling to produce runs, they should have been called up after their first hot week.
The Sox have been shuffling Nick Maton and Miguel Vargas around in the leadoff spot depending on who is on the mound. Vargas has looked like he's settled back into his struggles and Maton is not someone to rely on to get on base or put together a good at-bat, which you need from your leadoff guy.
It is time for the White Sox to stop wasting time and start promoting their prospects who have shown they're ready to get the call to come to the big leagues.
Roster casualties if Meidroth and Teel are called up.
If the White Sox are called up they would have to be added to the 40-man roster, which is at capacity.
Two potential names that would likely be on the chopping block to make room on the 40-man to add Teel and Meidroth are infielder Jacob Amaya and backup catcher Matt Thaiss.
Thaiss is splitting time with the Sox's other catcher, Korey Lee, who is off to a hot start after coming off a 3-4 day at the plate versus the Detroit Tigers.
If a platoon is already in place at catcher, then the Sox should call Teel up and have him catch four or five days a week and have Lee catch the other three or two days or put Teel in the outfield just because he has that capability and to get both hot bats in the lineup.
A situation could occur that Nick Maton could be the odd man out, and the Sox could carry three catchers. That would be against the norm, but Thaiss does have the versatility to play first and third base.
Whatever the case, the White Sox must play their young guys to see what they can bring, and what better time to do that than now?