Charlottesville, VA (cvillerightnow.com): Virginia Baseball fans are suddenly inundated with reasons to watch what happens regarding 2024’s worst team in Major League Baseball, the Chicago White Sox, going into the 2025 season.  The squad on the South Side of Chicago set a record for losses in a season this year, losing 121 games in a 162-game season.  With new manager Will Venable at the helm, it may be up to a pair, or even perhaps a trio of former Hoos to turn the organization around.   

First, there is Casey Saucke, just drafted this year by the Sox, who slashed .290 in 24 games for the Winston-Salem Dash, the Sox A+ Minor League Affiliate in 2024.  He will likely be along in a little while as he develops, but it is fun to track the progress of collegiate fan favorites. 

More pressing though, is 2023 ACC Player of the Year Kyle Teel arriving in Chicago as part of a package of prospects from Boston the Sox received in return for their ace Garrett Crochet.   Former UVA star Teel did not waste any time upon starting last season in AA Portland.  He earned promotion to the AAA Worcester Red Sox in no time at all, hitting a respectable .255 in 28 games in 2024, with a very respectable 37.4% on-base percentage.  MLB predicts, based on his metrics, that he will make his MLB debut next year.  He pipped the Sox former top catching prospect, Edgar Quero, for the top spot at the catching position in the organization upon his arrival in the trade.  Quero’s AAA numbers at Charlotte last season were better than Teel’s, but the Cuban is more seasoned at that level.  Both Teel and Quero are more defensively sound than last season’s Major League catcher Korey Lee.  But standing in Teel’s way to the starting job is another former UVA star, the backstop for the 2015 winning Wahoos, Matt Thaiss.   

Thaiss played his first five seasons in MLB with the Los Angeles Angels, where he has been strong defensively but has struggled to hit at the Major League level.  His best season was two years ago in 2023, where he played in 82 games behind the plate, earning a fielding percentage of 98.7%, making eight errors across that span.  However, he hit .214 and struck out 83 times.  Teel is no slouch on defense himself, and learning what he can from Thaiss, his superior hitting ability will likely put him in pole position to start before too long, if his propensity to hit to all fields, keep at-bats long, and put the barrel of the bat to the ball translates on the biggest stage.   

The White Sox are paying for house money in 2024, as there is nowhere to go but up.  A franchise with several hall-of-famers and a world series title under its belt would like to get back to being contenders for a division title.  Perhaps, one, two, or even three of Charlottesville’s finest former ballplayers can get them over the hump.  Opening day is March 27th, where we will find out.