White Sox add 4 prospects to 40-man roster
Deciding on who to add to the 40-man roster and provide Rule 5 draft protection and who to leave off used to be a simple process for the White Sox.
Given the shortage of prospects with major-league potential in the system, the Sox always had plenty of room on the 40-man.
That started to change following the 2016 season, when Chris Sale and Adam Eaton were traded for young talent as the White Sox launched a rebuild.
Now, the Sox are loaded with prospects, and they risk losing a few when the Rule 5 draft takes place on Dec. 13.
On Tuesday, the White Sox purchased the contracts of four players - right-handed pitchers Dylan Cease and Jordan Stephens, left-hander Kodi Medeiros and catcher Seby Zavala.
The Sox's 40-man roster now stands at 38.
The White Sox did not purchase the contracts of two pitchers who will likely attract outside interest in the Rule 5 draft.
Right-hander Spencer Adams, the Sox's second-round draft pick in 2014, was a combined 7-13 with a 3.79 ERA for Class AA Birmingham and AAA Charlotte last season. The 22-year-old starter was 4-7 with a 3.19 ERA after being promoted to Triple-A.
Righty Zach Thompson, a 6-foot-7 relief pitcher, was a combined 6-1 with a 1.55 ERA for high Class A Winston-Salem and Birmingham.
The 2014 fifth-round draft pick out of Texas-Arlington also pitched in the Arizona Fall League and was 0-1, 2.70 with 3 saves for the Glendale Desert Dogs.
"I went into the Fall League not really knowing how to pitch, I guess you could say," Thompson said. "I've gained a lot of learning in pitch sequencing. I kind of came in with the stuff I had but working here with the two pitching coaches we have (Rigo Beltran and Gerardo Casadiego), we've really gone over how to pitch to guys, when to throw certain pitches. I feel like it's helped me in a more advanced setting."
As for the keepers, Cease is the White Sox's top pitching prospect. Acquired with Eloy Jimenez from the Cubs in the Eloy Jimenez trade, the 22-year-old righty was a combined 12-2 with a 2.40 ERA and 160 strikeouts in 124 innings with Winston-Salem and Birmingham last season.
In his final 9 starts of the season for Birmingham, Cease was 3-0 with a 0.94 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 47⅔ innings.
Stephens, 26, was a combined 8-10 with a 4.23 ERA in 28 starts between Birmingham and Charlotte last season.
Acquired from the Brewers in a trade for Joakim Soria, the 22-year-old Medeiros was 7-7 with a 3.60 ERA while splitting the season between Class AA Biloxi with Milwaukee and Birmingham.
Zavala, 25, batted .258 with 22 doubles, 13 home runs and 51 RBI for Birmingham and Charlotte last season.