Moncada look ready, but Chicago White Sox won't rush him
INDIANAPOLIS - The more he plays, the more you know.
Yoan Moncada belongs in the major leagues.
"The guy's incredible," said starting pitcher Carson Fulmer, Moncada's Class AAA Charlotte teammate.
Getting off to a bit of a slow start with the Knights this season, the 21-year-old second baseman is now in quite a groove.
In Monday night's 5-3 loss to the Indianapolis Indians at Victory Field, Moncada went 1-for-5. Earlier in the day, the Chicago White Sox's top prospect was named International League batter of the week after going 11-for-22 (.500) with 2 home runs, 4 RBI and 8 runs scored while raising his overall average to .352.
"It's my first time with this team, but I've been feeling good," said Moncada, one of four players acquired from the Boston Red Sox in the Chris Sale trade. "This season has been good for me. I've performed in the way that I wanted and I'm happy with it. I know that it's a lot of work to do, but I've been feeling good and happy with my performance."
Nearly three weeks shy of his 22nd birthday, Moncada already has shown he has the tools to become a big-time star with the White Sox.
He can hit from both sides of the plate, for average and power. He has blazing speed. A natural third baseman, he already has made several highlight defensive plays at second base.
Moncada is ready, but the Sox are rebuilding and they are likely to keep the 6-foot-2, 205-pounder at Charlotte into July so he doesn't gain "Super Two" status. That would cost the White Sox a year of salary arbitration.
"His situation is a little bit different than most," Knights manager Mark Grudzielanek said. "He's so young and the reps, learning situations out there, being in the right spots, he hasn't had a whole lot of hours out there.
"This is nothing but good for him. It's not just about hitting and catching the ball. There are so many more little things, detailed stuff, you have to learn and understand.
"He's there, he's getting there. You could throw him up there (majors) right now and he'd be fine, there's no question about it. It's a work in progress. They'll be some things there, 'How come he didn't know that, or this?' Well, he's 21 years old, how many minor-league games has he played in?
"That's out of my hands, when he's ready. I give my opinion and there are people up there that get paid to do that. I'm not in that situation. I love having him here, he's a phenomenal talent and he's going to have a hopefully long and healthy big-league career and we'll see where that goes.
"But he has potential to be somebody very special."
Impressive start:
After making the difficult jump from Class AA Birmingham's starting rotation to the White Sox's bullpen last July, it's not surprising Carson Fulmer failed to land on his feet.
The Sox's first-round draft choice in 2015 (No. 8 overall), Fulmer finished last year in AAA Charlotte's rotation and was 2-0 with a 0.60 ERA in his final 3 starts.
This season Fulmer is 4-1 with a 2.88 ERA with the Knights.
"I've had some really good starts," he said. "I had one that kind of got away from me a little bit. But after that, I've had some really good quality starts. I've thrown a ton of strikes and I've gotten past five innings each time I've been out. I'm continuing to work on it."