Chicago White Sox to Eloy: See you in 2019

The Chicago White Sox added an outfielder from Class AAA Charlotte on Monday.

But it was Ryan Cordell suiting up in the Sox's clubhouse, not Eloy Jimenez.

As expected, the Sox are not calling up their best prospect this season. Also expected, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said keeping Jimenez off the roster has nothing to do with delaying his major-league service time.

"As you've heard me say throughout this process, probably going back 10 or 11 months now, this is a year in which patience is going to be of the utmost importance in this rebuild," Hahn said before the Sox played the Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field. "You've heard me say at times we are going to be tested, and this is certainly one of these times.

"At this point, we don't feel it makes sense for Eloy, at age 21, to make an appearance at a third level this season. From a player-development standpoint, we view him as continuing to improve. He has had a very good season offensively.

"In our opinion, it's in everyone's best interest for him to continue to develop into a well-rounded, impactful player that we project him to be."

Jimenez was not in the lineup Monday for Charlotte's final game of the season, so the left fielder is done for the year unless he decides to play winter ball again in his native Dominican Republic.

Splitting the season between AA Birmingham and Charlotte, Jimenez posted a scorching .337/.384/.577 with 22 home runs and 75 RBI in only 108 games.

"One thing that I hope does not get lost in this is how excited we are about his future and how big a part he is of our future," Hahn said. "Eloy understands that. He has heard from me and from others. His agents have heard it from me. He's very well positioned to make a significant impact at the big-league level at age 22 next year, which is a fantastic path for any essential impact player to be on."

Hahn said all the right things about why Jimenez was not working on Labor Day, but the obvious fact is, bringing up the future star now doesn't help get the White Sox into the playoffs.

By waiting to bring up Jimenez in early April of next season, the Sox get an extra year of service time before the 6-foot-4, 220-pounder is eligible for free agency.

Even though it's not fair to the affected player, stalling service time has become a common business practice in baseball.

The Cubs held Kris Bryant back in the minors in 2015, the Atlanta Braves held Ronald Acuna Jr. back at the start of this season and, like the White Sox and Jimenez, the Toronto Blue Jays are keeping Vladimir Guerrero Jr. off the September roster.

There's not much Jimenez can do about it, but he did write an article in the Players' Tribune in late August under the heading: I'm Ready.

"I thought it was a great article, a fantastic article, because the fans got exposed and the public got exposed to what makes this kid tick," Hahn said. "It reinforces a lot about his makeup and how special it is. I love his enthusiasm for the city of Chicago, his passion and desire for winning multiple championships here, as he put it. It's from the heart and sincere.

"In terms of the proclamation that he's ready, we've been hearing that from him since A-ball. So that's fine. We much prefer our players to feel like they are ready and they want to accelerate the time frame we have them on.

"I think Coop (pitching coach Don Cooper) put it best when he said we would rather tame a bronco than prod a mule. We might have a thoroughbred on our hands here, but we are going to still develop him on a path that we feel makes the most sense."

Hahn was asked if Jimenez is disappointed with the present or excited about the future.

"Probably a combination of both, I would think," the Sox's GM said. "I think it's natural for him to be disappointed. He's not alone, by the way. I've had conversations with multiple agents over the last few days about various players who feel they should be promoted to the big leagues at this time.

"That's normal. That's par for the course with all 30 clubs come this time of the year. I know at the very least I have no doubt about Eloy understanding how much we value him and how important we view him toward our future and how excited we are that he's going to be a White Sox."

Just not right now.