The good news keeps on coming.
According to Chris Cotillo, the White Sox are set to promote top catching prospect Kyle Teel in time for this weekend’s series vs. the Royals. Teel was scratched from tonight’s Triple-A Charlotte lineup shortly before first pitch.
Acquired along with Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, and Wikelman Gonzalez in the trade that sent ace Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox, Teel is widely regarded as one of the best catching prospects in baseball. He is currently ranked as the 3rd-best catching prospect and 27th-best overall prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline.
Drafted 14th overall in the 2023 MLB draft by Boston, Teel rose through the Red Sox system quickly. He ended his first season with their Double-A affiliate and spent the majority of the 2024 season there as well. At that level, he established himself as one of the premier prospects in baseball, slashing .298/.390/.462 in 2024 before earning a promotion to Triple-A. He required a bit of an adjustment period there initially, but caught fire in September of last year to close out his first full professional campaign.
So far in 2025, Teel has been as good as advertised. He got off to a bit of a slow start, but once again heated up to go on a 19-game hit streak and a 34-game on-base streak down in Charlotte. He is currently hitting .295 with a .886 OPS and a 131 wRC+. He has also hit eight home runs on the year, while also showcasing his athleticism with seven 7 stolen bases, and proving to be an asset defensively behind the plate.
It remains to be seen what the corresponding move is, as the White Sox currently have two catchers on the roster in Edgar Quero and Korey Lee. Teel confirmed earlier this week that he had been getting some reps in at 1B and has some experience in the outfield from his time at Virginia. Despite that, Chris Getz has affirmed that the Sox view him as a long-term catcher. If they choose to keep three catchers on the roster, then that would likely leave Tim Elko as the odd man out, utilizing Miguel Vargas and the catching trio to fill the first base position instead.
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Featured Photo: Laura Wolff/Charlotte Knights
