Chicago White Sox land a keeper in Trayce Thompson
When evaluating young players late in the season, I like to evoke the Brent Morel rule.
After a nondescript 2011 season with the Chicago White Sox, Morel caught fire in September, hitting 8 homers and driving in 19 runs.
Morel was the Sox' starting third baseman the following season, but after batting .177 with no home runs in 35 games he quickly disappeared from view.
That leads us to Trayce Thompson, who has been spectacular in all phases of the game since joining the White Sox from Class AAA Charlotte on Aug. 3.
"You know he's a big-league player," manager Robin Ventura said. "By watching him and just seeing him play, the more reps he gets, you're going to get a better understanding.
"But right now, from what we've seen the last few years, he's a better player and I think he's a big-league player."
Thompson comes from a decorated basketball family, and his athletic prowess is evident every time he steps on the field.
In 26 games with the Sox, the 24-year-old outfielder has a .377/.424/.689 hitting line with 4 home runs and 13 RBI.
Going back to the Morel rule, you have to be careful when trying to gauge young talent late in the season, but Thompson definitely looks like he is going to be in the White Sox' starting lineup in 2016.
"I just try to be myself and play my game," said Thompson, the White Sox' 2009 second-round draft pick out of Santa Margarita (California) Catholic High School. "I just want the confidence from my teammates. I want them to believe in me like I have the trust in myself. I haven't tried to do too much up here. It's been very comfortable for me.
"I feel like when I was in the minor leagues, you try so hard to get here and once you get here it's almost a relief and you just go play. It's kind of like a weight lifted off your shoulders. It's been a lot of fun. These guys make it comfortable for me. No one has really given me a hard time or anything like that, so it's been a lot of fun."
Thompson's breakout season almost ended Monday night when he tried making a diving catch in right field and wound up straining his left elbow.
"It's kind of a day-to-day thing," Thompson said. "It's nothing serious. I'm really lucky. The replay looked pretty bad.
"We'll see how it feels throughout the rest of this day. I'm not taking any swings or anything today, so we'll see how it feels and hopefully it feels better and even more the day after that and on and on."