GLENDALE, Ariz. — It’s that time of spring and the White Sox made three more roster cuts prior to Monday’s Cactus League game against the Rockies at Camelback Ranch.
Right-handers Wikelman Gonzalez and David Sandlin and infielder Tanner Murray were sent to Triple-A Charlotte.
With the moves, the Sox have 52 players remaining in camp: 26 pitchers, five catchers, 10 infielders and 11 outfielders.
“A little bit of a different story with each of them,” Sox manager Will Venable explained. “They all did well and had really productive camps.”
Venable on Murray: “I really liked what he did. Really good defensive versatility. He put some charges into some balls. He’s somebody we still value and think he can come help us. But we’ve got other guys ahead of him right now.”
Venable on Gonzalez: “Very much still a work in progress. We really like him, too. He’s such a hard worker and a great guy in the clubhouse. He’s got to throw more strikes and be more aggressive in the zone. On that he knows and he’s working very hard on it.”
Venable on Sandlin: “By the time he got in here he’d been behind the eight ball a little bit as far as his build up. So, we want to just make sure what he needs to do to continue build up. And we expect him to be an option at some point as well. The back was a problem when he got here and more recently there’s been some elbow soreness. We’re really just being cautious with him.”
Gonzales left a game last week because of back spasms, but he worked out of the backfields Monday, Venable said, and that had nothing to do with his demotion.
Venable happy with Kelenic
Venable said he feels like Jarred Kelenic is starting to come around. Kelenic is in camp on a minor league contract and must be added to the 40-man roster if he makes the club. The former top prospect for the Mets and Mariners has hit homers in his last two outings after a rough start at the plate. He’s raised his spring average to .267 after hitting .167 last season for the Braves in 65 games.
“He’s really been good,” Venable said. “The things we’ve highlighted with him — his athleticism, obviously his defensive ability, his pop at the plate — it’s all coming up now. It’s really about the way he’s just gone about his business, staying on line and staying focused on things that matter.”
With the Sox having lost a record 121 games in 2024 and 102 last season, there’s obviously some room for Kelenic and a lot of other players.
“If he keeps doing what he’s doing, it’s going to force us to make some tough decisions here,” Vanable said. “And that’s what we want. We’ve given these guys transparency that there was a path for a lot of them to make the team. They’re going to make it hard for us and that’s what we want. That means we’re in a good spot when we have these tough decisions to make.”