White Sox Minor League Update: June 20, 2024

Mark Payton Shines in Charlotte, Shawn Goosenberg goes yard for Winston-Salem, and other storylines from the farm

Charlotte Knights 7, Gwinnett Stripers 5 (Gameday box) (Statcast box)
Another dub has the Charlotte Knights’ long cold streak to begin the month firmly in the rearview mirror. Veteran center fielder Mark Payton played hero in tonight’s iteration of Knights baseball to help the team secure their fifth straight win.

The offense put up five runs in the first two innings of play today, which ... turned out to be necessary considering the relatively unsteady start they got on the mound from righthander Touki Toussaint. Toussaint worked four innings, giving up four hits and four runs with four strikeouts for fours across the board, with one important exception: He issued seven free passes.

The bullpen would see to it that the offensive effort the Knights turned in would be rewarded with a win. Across the last five innings of play, the pen held the Stripers to just one run on four hits with a whopping 10 strikeouts! Relatively-recent promotee Adisyn Coffey earned his third save at the Triple-A level, while recent demotee Jordan Leasure pitched a perfect frame in the seventh with no hits while striking out every batter he faced. Both Leasure and Coffey figure to play an important role in the White Sox bullpen as the season progresses.

All in all, the offense outgunned a loaded Stripers lineup full of major league hopefuls and tenured veterans. Will an offensive performer be awarded MVP honors in this, or does the pitching staff deserve some love? You decide!

Montgomery Biscuits 6, Birmingham Barons 1 (Gameday box)
I have to admit, reader, I’m a genuine White Sox fan, but my day job is within the Tampa Bay Rays organization; that makes games like this, where a Sox affiliate plays a Rays affiliate, slightly bittersweet. Add to the equation that my favorite baseball player in MiLB plays for the Barons, and you get to watch me have a full-blown identity crisis in real time.

I digress ...

The Barons lost pretty handily tonight, with lefty Jake Eder turning in an uncharacteristically shaky start on the bump. In his five innings of play, he allowed six runs on eight hits while striking out four and walking one. He was also saddled with the L.

Offensively, Brooks Baldwin was responsible for driving in the only Barons run on the night. However, first baseman Tim Elko, who has been relatively hot lately, accounted for nearly half of Birmingham’s hits in the game. Unfortunately, none of them went for extra bases or drove anybody in. As a matter of fact, this Barons offense could only manage singles against a shutdown Biscuits pitching staff.

The Barons will be hoping for a bounce-back — and they better, as in this last series of the first half the club is frittering away what once seemed a shoo-in division title; the division lead has slimmed to just a half-game over the Cubs affiliate Tennessee Smokies.

Winston-Salem Dash 11, Asheville Tourists 10 (Gameday box)
Oh, wow. What a game for the Dash! How about a four-run, ninth-inning, come-from-behind win against the Asheville Tourists?

When the dust had settled, all but three Winston-Salem starters had driven in a run, with four of them having driven in two or more. Shawn Goosenberg, batting third and getting rest at DH, went 2-for-5 with three runs driven in, a triple, and a homer. This should, I’d wager, have him in firm contention for MVP honors. However, infielders Mario Camilletti and Wes Kath also turned in scorching hot, three-run performances to vie for contention atop the MVP of the game leaderboards.

On the mound, starter Shane Murphy had nothing short of a nightmare start. In 3 2⁄3 innings pitched, Murphy allowed all 10 of Asheville’s runs, on nine hits and two walks while fanning just two — yup, those 10 runs all were earned. Frander Veras relieved Murphy in the fourth and tuned in 2 1⁄3 innings of scoreless ball before handing the rock to eventual victor Jared Kelley.

For those who aren’t familiar, Kelley, despite struggling a bit in Double-A this year, has been money since returning to High-A. He sports a 1.26 ERA to go along with four saves for Winston-Salem. Will Kelley draw your MVP vote, or will the offense be awarded for its 11-run explosion?

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 4, Myrtle Beach Pelicans 3 (Gameday box)
The crowd in Kannapolis was treated to a return to form for young righthander Aldrin Batista. Batista threw six frames of one-run ball with eight strikeouts and NO walks. Despite his recent skid, this gem lowered Batista’s season ERA to a terrific 3.23 on the season.

The Ballers offense did just enough to back up Batista’s sterling start, and preserved the win for the righty.

Center fielder Albertson Asigen was the only Baller to record a multi-hit performance in this one. A duo of Ballers, Mikey Kane and Caden Connor, recorded doubles. Surprisingly, none of them drove in any runs; that distinction belonged to both Drake Logan and Luis Pineda, who each drove in two.

All in all, a host of Ballers contributed to tonight’s solid win. Who will you vote for when it comes to MVP honors?

ACL Reds 6, ACL White Sox 5 (Gameday Box)
I’m beginning to think this Eloy Jiménez fella might be good at baseball. Despite the losing effort, Jiménez turned in a multi-hit effort out of the 2-spot. Plus, Arnold Prado enjoyed an amazing game from the 6-spot, belting his first homer of 2024 en route to a three-RBI night in the loss.

None of this offensive production, however, would be enough to make up for two consecutive blown saves from the ACL Sox pitching staff. The Reds win a tight one in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the ninth.