With Nick Nastrini making his much awaited MLB debut tonight, many fans are excited about what he can bring to the team, as he was the prize prospect in the Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly trade. But, news has broken that he won’t be the only one in this series, let alone rotation, making their MLB debut.
According to Vinnie Duber, the White Sox are calling up their #11 ranked prospect, Jonathan Cannon. This is a great sign, as the White Sox should allow as many young guys who are ready to contribute get a chance this season, as it essentially is already chalked up as a lost season.
Cannon is a very intriguing prospect. He represented the White Sox in the MLB Prospect Future’s game last season and pitched extremely well. Over 14 starts in high A in 2023, Cannon pitched to a 3.59 ERA, striking out 67 batters and just walking 24 in 72 innings. That solid start got him a promotion to AA towards the middle of the season.
In AA, he struggled a bit, as he had a 5.77 ERA over 48 innings. He struck out 39 and walked 15. This wasn’t the AA debut he was looking for, but he still flashed his major league stuff.
In Spring Training, he pitched well, as over 11 innings he struck out 10 batters while only walking one. He gave up three runs, en route to a 2.45 ERA. This was an encouraging start to the season and would earn himself a spot at Charlotte to start the season.
His AAA debut has gone smoothly thus far, as he has started two games, pitching 9.2 innings. In those innings, he has given up three runs, striking out 11 batters and issuing three walks. This was a great start and one of the reasons he was chosen over some of the other veteran starting pitchers in AAA.
Cannon is known for his good command, as he has a 121-47 strikeout to walk ratio, which is very good. Considering the walk issues that have plagued the White Sox the last few years, it is refreshing to see someone pound the strike zone.
Cannon has a solid arsenal consisting of a fastball, cutter, changeup, slider, and curveball. He can get his fastball up into the high 90s which is a plus, as it helps to have a little bit of velocity in the majors, as it can help cover your mistakes.
MLB Pipeline scouts aren’t in love with any specific pitches of his, as they rank everything as above average, but scouts love his cutter the most. As long as he can get batters out, it doesn’t matter what he throws.
I like the aggressiveness by Chris Getz to call up a top prospect, as this club needs some excitement and energy. They need to make sure that he sticks around and gets a chance to start a significant amount of games. That will be the only way we can figure out if he can play at the major league level. If you send him down before he gets a true chance, then you’ll never be able to fully evaluate him.
A corresponding roster move will be announced tomorrow, so I wonder who they will DFA/option to make room.
