Drew Thorpe was an important part of the Dylan Cease trade.
And so far, he’s showing why with the Chicago White Sox Double-A affiliate Birmingham — where he has a 0.75 ERA and 4-0 record in four starts.
Another pitcher acquired in that trade with the San Diego Padres, Jairo Iriarte, has an even lower ERA (0.51) in his four starts with the Barons.
Thorpe is the No. 3 prospect in the organization, according to MLB.com, and Iriarte is No. 9.
The two are part of an impressive Birmingham staff that leads the Southern League and is third in minor-league baseball with a 2.34 ERA.
Thorpe, Iriarte, fellow right-hander Mason Adams and lefty Ky Bush are a combined 7-2 with a 1.59 ERA in 15 starts.
They’ve helped Birmingham to the best record in the Southern League at 15-6 entering Tuesday.
“The Southern League always has been a pretty good barometer for where guys are at, and that team’s playing well,” Sox director of player development Paul Janish said Tuesday. “From where we stand, there’s a lot of guys on that team we feel can play.
“We’ve got our fingers crossed the pitchers on that staff can stay healthy. They’re playing really good defense. To be honest, I really don’t think they’re clicking on all cylinders offensively yet. So there’s reason to believe they’ll continue to play well.”
Janish provided updates for several of the prospects in the organization ahead of Tuesday’s Sox game against the Minnesota Twins at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Edgar Quero, ranked the No. 5 player in the organization, is one of the catchers working with that pitching staff in Birmingham. He also has a team-leading five home runs and 21 RBIs.
“The team’s pitching extremely well,” Janish said. “There’s obviously talent on the staff but between Edgar and obviously (Michael) Turner is catching down there as well, but Edgar, for a 21-year-old catcher in Double-A, he’s got a lot on his plate and he’s doing about as much as we could ask him to do.
“If you read between the lines in regards to (the pregame) pitcher’s meeting and the rapport between the pitchers, both Spanish and English-speaking pitchers — obviously Edgar’s of Latin descent but he speaks English well — that’s been what I’ve been most impressed with. I’m glad that he’s doing well offensively, but the intangible piece that is imperative to the catching position is what to me has really stuck out this year.”
Five of the team’s top 10 prospects — Thorpe, third baseman Bryan Ramos (No. 4), Quero, Iriarte and pitcher Jake Eder (No. 10) are on the Birmingham roster.
The team’s top prospect, shortstop Colson Montgomery, is hitting .217 with three home runs and nine RBIs in 23 games at Triple-A Charlotte.
“Colson’s in a good place right now,” Janish said. “He’s at Triple-A for the first time, it’s a new level. He’s had a bunch of success in the minor leagues offensively. He’s at a point right now where it’s a combination of a couple things. He’s only one step away from the major leagues, right? So if we’re going to ask him to play that position at the major-league level, he’s got to continue to play defensively, continue to develop, even just from a physical standpoint of playing day in and day out, which he has been, to his credit.
“Those things to consider are some of the bigger parts of his development right now. But he’s in a good place. He got off to a relatively slow start. We’ve got to remember he’s really young. He’s obviously very talented. Very little concern at this point for Colson. He’s going to be just fine, and he’s doing what he needs to do.”
Montgomery, 22, was a first-round pick in 2021. The team’s first-round pick in 2022, pitcher Noah Schultz, has a 4.50 ERA and 27 strikeouts in four starts for Class A Winston-Salem. Schultz is ranked the No. 2 prospect in the organization.
Janish said while Double-A shortstop Brooks Baldwin — who ranks second in the minors with a .425 average — is the surprise of the year so far, what Schultz is doing as a 20-year-old “is unique.”
“I’m saying that understanding that everybody thinks he’s a big deal,” Janish said. “Paying attention to him over the next 18-24 months with regards to physical development, the psychology of what he’s doing, he’s still kind of growing into his (6-foot-9) body. It’s a really, really unique skill set.
“The makeup, the character. He’s a very cordial, quiet kid, but he’s starting to come into some personality as well. It’s really encouraging to see. My understanding is he’s felt really good up to this point. The most important thing is just doing what we can to make sure he just has a normal season relatively. Going out and pitching when it’s his turn and that kind of thing.”
Last year’s first-round pick, shortstop Jacob Gonzalez, is hitting .247 with four doubles and four RBIs in 20 games with Winston-Salem.
“He’s a college guy but, first full season that he’s getting exposed to,” Janish said. “He’s in a good place. He got off to a slow four or five-game start, which in the grand scheme of things is not a big deal.
“Jacob likes to play well. He’s doing good. He needs to play every day and understand what it means to play professionally and play baseball in the middle of the field every day.”
Janish said the team’s struggles at the major-league level haven’t added any extra pressure to his position.
“Not letting some of those ulterior variables influence us with regards to certain guys in the development process,” he said. “One of the biggest things this year is we have a lot of new staff on the development side. I think that piece is significant to make sure we have a unified front and are conveying very consistent messaging to players regardless of what affiliate they’re at.
“To me, those are some of the most important things so it’s a long-term plan of this is who we are, this is the type of baseball that we play. This is what’s expected.”
