White Sox playing coy on Bryan Ramos

Bryan Ramos looks like the type of player who would benefit from a rebuilding season. After their dreadful start, any far-flung hopes of competing in the AL Central were gone, seemingly opening the door for prospects to get an extended look in the majors.

Yet before Saturday’s game against the Guardians, White Sox manager Pedro Grifol wasn’t ready to commit to keeping Ramos in Chicago.

“It’s not obvious [he won’t be sent down], but he’s got to continue to play,” Grifol said. “This is not four out of seven or anything like that. This is a long haul. He’s doing really well right now. We’re taking it day by day with him.”

Through Friday, Ramos was hitting .318 and playing solid defense at third base. But the Sox might have to make a decision soon, as Danny Mendick (lower back tightness) ran on the field Saturday afternoon and is due to begin a rehab stint at Triple-A Charlotte, though Grifoll didn’t specify when that would begin.

In the meantime, the Sox will continue evaluating Ramos. Grifol said the team wouldn’t be quick to make a call on Ramos.

“Right now, he’s doing everything he’s capable of doing to show that he belongs here,” Grifol said. “He’s putting good at-bats together, he’s playing good defense. But at the same time, he is extremely young. This is his first taste of the big leagues.”

Man of Leasure
Reliever Jordan Leasure has emerged as a dependable high-leverage arm. On Friday, he collected his second career save, and he was arguably better a night before.

On Thursday with the Sox leading Cleveland 3-0, Leisure entered in the seventh inning with the bases loaded and nobody out. Leisure struck out Bo Naylor and Tyler Freeman before inducing a Kyle Manzardo groundout to second to end the threat.

Grifol noticed Leasure’s calm demeanor long before this series against the Guardians.

“He was never fazed here,” Grifol said. “Even the first day we threw him out there, even in spring training. He was always calm, he was always under control. The bigger the moment, the more relaxed he was, it seemed like.”

Coming into Saturday’s game, Leasure had a 2.20 ERA, 11 strikeouts and two holds in 17 appearances. Thanks to his mix of a four-seam fastball, slider and curveball, Leasure has been difficult to hit. Per Baseball Savant, of the 48 batted balls against Leasure, only one has been barreled up (exit velocity at least 98 mph).

“I don’t know what’s ticking inside, but I know he looks comfortable out there,” Grifol said. “When you couple that with some talent and some weapons, it’s a pretty good combination.”

A different Sheets
In 2023, Gavin Sheets struggled with his command of the strike zone. He walked 28 times and struck out 66 times and ended the year with a .267 on-base percentage.

Sheets has shown improvement this season, coming into Saturday with 25 strikeouts but also 16 walks. His on-base percentage has jumped to .353.

“He’s got a good eye,” Grifol said. “There’s no reason for him to get out of the strike zone and try to make something happen when it’s not there. Just leave it to the next guy.”