As we get closer to Spring Training but the lockout persists, the White Sox took a step forward in finalizing their coaching staff heading into the 2022 season.
This afternoon, via a press release, the White Sox announced their player development staff (minor league staff) throughout the organization.
Two of the biggest changes are as follows:
- Jasmine Dunston was officially announced as the Director of Minor League Operations
- Former White Sox Outfielder Nicky Delmonico is named the Hitting Coach at High-A Winston-Salem, replacing Mike Daniel
Dunston, 31, comes to the South Side after spending just the past year as a specialist in the Cincinnati Reds player development department. She boasts an impressive resume, interning for the NFL Branch of All Pro Sports & Entertainment, working for the Las Vegas Raiders as a clerical assistant, and then as a certified law clerk at John F. Kennedy University. She also played softball at Tennessee State before going on to Valparaiso University for her Masters in Sports Administration and then John F. Kennedy University for her Juris Doctorate in Sports Law.
Delmonico comes as the biggest surprise here, as the former White Sox will be making his return to the organization. A former sixth-round draft pick, Delmonico saw stretches of positive play but was never able to make a consistent impact in the majors. He slashed just .224/.312/.384 across parts of four seasons with the White Sox.
As the press release states, there was no change in manager at the AAA, AA, and Low-A levels – Wes Helms, Justin Jirschele, and Guillermo Quiroz will reprise their roles, respectively, at each level. Lorenzo Bundy, the new High-A Winston-Salem Dash Manager, has served 13 seasons previously as a minor league manager and returns to the White Sox organization after two seasons with the Mets. Patrick Leyland will become a first-time manager in the Arizona Complex League after serving as the bench coach with the Low-A Kannapolis Cannonballers last season.
As for the returning coaches: Helms spent 13 years in the majors with a career .256 average, 75 home runs, and 374 RBI. This will be just his second season as the manager of the Charlotte Knights due to the cancellation of the 2020 season. He was 45-75 last season, working with a roster with very little talent.
Jirschele, now 31, has been a rising star in the White Sox organization for several seasons. A career minor league, Jirschele retired in 2015, and by 2017, at the age of just 27, was the manager of the Kannapolis Cannonballers (Intimidators, at the time). In 2018, he led the Kannapolis club to the Atlantic League Championship Finals. He progressed to the Winston-Salem Dash in 2019 as their manager, going 72-61, and was promoted to the manager of the Barons prior to the 2020 season. As a result of COVID, this will be Jirschele’s second season as the manager of the Barons, after going 62-56 in his first season with the club.
Quiroz is a former Venezuelan catcher who started his coaching career with the White Sox in 2018 with the Dash. He managed a young and inexperienced club in 2021 with Kannapolis, going 40-79 on the season. Just like Jirschele and Helms, this will be his second season in his current managerial position.
The goal for all levels: growth, development, and continued experience in order to help the White Sox come out of the basement of prospect rankings throughout baseball (as reported today by Baseball America). The White Sox ranked 30th in their organizational talent rankings.
Full Player Development Department Assignments for 2022:
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT STAFF
- Assistant General Manager/Player Development: Chris Getz
- Director of Minor League Operations: Jasmine Dunston
- Assistant Director, Player Development: Kenny Williams Jr.
- Assistant Director, Baseball Operations: Graham Harboe
- Assistant, Player Development/Latin Education: Grant Flick
- Biomechanical Analyst: C.J. Gearhart
- Assistant, Player Development/Video: Jack Larimer
- Senior Coordinator, Minor League Operations: Kathy Potoski
- Education Coordinator: Erin Santana
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT INSTRUCTORS/ROVERS
- Field Coordinator: Doug Sisson
- Pitching Coordinator: Everett Teaford
- Assistant Pitching Coordinator: J.R. Perdew
- Hitting Coordinator: Andy Barkett
- Assistant Hitting Coordinator: Ryan Johansen
- Infield Coordinator: Ryan Newman
- Catching Coordinator: Julio Mosquera
- Assistant Outfield/Baserunning Coordinator: Mike Daniel
- Rehab Pitching Coach: Donnie Veal
- Development Coach: Danny Gonzalez
- Minor League Performance Coordinator: Gage Crosgrove
MEDICAL STAFF
- Medical Coordinator: Scott Takao
- Physical Therapist Coordinator: Brooks Klein
- Minor League Physical Therapist: Katie Stone
- Minor League Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC): Evan Jurjevic
- Sports Psychologist: Dr. Rob Seifer
- Nutritionists: Danielle Mach and Christine Jordhamo
ARIZONA OPERATIONS
- Facility Manager: Joe Lachcik
- Minor League Clubhouse and Equipment Manager: Dan Flood
- Assistant Minor League Clubhouse Manager: Bryant Biasotti
CLASS AAA CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS
- Manager: Wes Helms
- Pitching Coach: Matt Zaleski
- Hitting Coach: Chris Johnson
- Trainer: Cory Barton
- Performance Coach: Shawn Powell
CLASS AA BIRMINGHAM BARONS
- Manager: Justin Jirschele
- Pitching Coach: Richard Dotson
- Hitting Coach: Charlie Romero
- Trainer: Hyeon Kim
- Performance Coach: George Timke
CLASS A WINSTON-SALEM DASH
- Manager: Lorenzo Bundy
- Pitching Coach: Danny Farquhar
- Hitting Coach: Nicky Delmonico
- Trainer: Carson Wooten
- Performance Coach: TBD
CLASS A KANNAPOLIS CANNON BALLERS
- Manager: Guillermo Quiroz
- Pitching Coach: John Ely
- Hitting Coach: Cam Seitzer
- Trainer: Jeremy Kneebusch
- Performance Coach: Kevin Childs
ARIZONA COMPLEX LEAGUE WHITE SOX
- Manager: Patrick Leyland
- Bench Coach: Mike Gellinger
- Pitching Coach: Drew Hasler
- Hitting Coach: Devin DeYoung
- Trainer: Scott Johnson
- Performance Coach/Rehab: Daniel Cobian
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ACADEMY | DSL WHITE SOX
- Academy Supervisor: Louis Silverio
- Field Coordinator: Julio Bruno
- Assistant Field Coordinator; Infield: Guillermo Reyes
- Administration Assistant: Carolina Santos
- Complex Operations Coordinator: Manuel Santana
- Manager/Catching Coordinator: Ángel Rosario
- Pitching Coach: Leo Hernández
- Assistant Pitching Coach: José Brito
- Hitting Coach: Gerardo Olivares
- Assistant Hitting Coach: Angel González
- Trainer: Sergio Marte
- Performance Coach: Jonathan Hasbun
- English Teacher: Pablo Frias
- Education Assistant: Luis Villar
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Featured Photo: White Sox (@whitesox) / Twitter