The Chicago White Sox seem to have a knack for finding that pitching prospect that will rise through the system quickly and into the majors to stardom faster than you can blink your eyes. Well yes that is a bit stretching it, but the last pitching prospect that I can remember rising to the majors after just one White Sox minor league season, was lefty Chris Sale in 2010.
That season, Sale was drafted out of Florida Gulf Coast University in the first round (13th overall) of the June amateur draft. He went on to pitch as a reliever with their Class A Advanced Winston-Salem Dash, where in 11 games, he posted a 2.25 ERA. Sale was then moved up to their Triple-A affiliate Charlotte Knights, and in seven games, had a 2.84 ERA, with 15 strike outs in 6.1 innings.
The Florida native made his major league debut in 2010 coming out of the White Sox bullpen and posted 1.93 ERA in 21 games. In just two seasons, he was became an all star pitcher and so far in his brief major league career, he is 44-29, with a career 2.76 ERA.
Now it looks like the White Sox may have another gem in their system as lefty Carlos Rodon, their first round pick (3rd overall) in the 2014 June amateur draft out of North Carolina State University, looks to follow in the same foot steps as Sale.
Rondon, doesn’t seem to have the same flair as Sale had in the minors, but he rose through the system very quickly in 2014, starting out in Rookie ball and finishing the season in Triple A. Overall in nine games, mainly as a starter, he had a 2.92 ERA, with 38 strikeouts in 24.2 innings.
If I had to compare Rodon to Sale just by the numbers alone, the only thing that would stand out is that Rodon had 14 more innings in the minors than Sale, but the latter lefty was a bit more dominant.
As reported by MLB.com on Tuesday, there is speculation that Rodon is on the radar to break camp with the club as a reliever in 2015 and possibly join the rotation sooner than expected.
One teammate in White Sox system was very impressed with Rodon’s abilities, “His slider is one of the most devastating pitches I’ve ever seen, and the kid works hard. When you are around him, you don’t know he’s the third pick. Just a great kid,” White Sox pitching prospect Tyler Danish, tells MLB.com.
All eyes will be on the young lefty when White Sox pitchers and catchers report to camp in early February, and if his spring is any indication as to what is expected, the White Sox could have another lefty gem in their grasps to groom into an all-star.
(Photo Credit: Buren Foster / Charlotte Knights)
David Conde
David is the Co-Founder and Executive Editor of Legends On Deck®, as well as a Co-Host on Legends On Deck Podcast. David was a Senior Editor for MetsMerizedOnline.com, MetsMinors.net and Contributor for Hardballchat.com that spanned from 2010 to 2014. David made his MLB Debut as a writer in June 2014, while covering the NY Mets at Citi Field, for MetsmerizedOnline.com. David also coaches baseball for ages 13-15, a Babe Ruth League team in his local community. David's passion is coaching the game he loves to the future Legends of Tomorrow as well as making available a website that people can have fun sharing and reading. David is also passionate about his career as a Mortgage Loan Officer which allows him to help many families reach their dreams of owning a home. Connect with David via his Social Media pages as he loves to chat all about baseball.
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