How the next White Sox youth movement is taking shape

This story was excerpted from Scott Merkin’s White Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO -- The date was July 19, 2017, and Yoán Moncada was making his eagerly anticipated first White Sox appearance in front of 24,907 on a warm Wednesday night at what was then known as Guaranteed Rate Field.

Moncada’s first at-bat came in the second inning against the Dodgers’ Kenta Maeda, coaxing a nine-pitch walk. On pitch No. 8, Moncada fouled off a Maeda offering and received a standing ovation from the crowd.

A memorable moment, for sure, and a welcome to an important next phase of the White Sox rebuild.

We move ahead a little less than eight years, and it was infielder Chase Meidroth’s turn to experience the fervor and excitement of his big league debut at home against Boston on April 11. The crowd was understandably smaller -- with cold temperatures cruising across Chicago in early April -- and Meidroth’s four-pitch walk was a bit less dramatic than Moncada’s initial plate appearance.

But it had the same feel of youth being served in this latest rebuild configuration.

“He's part of our future,” said White Sox general manager Chris Getz, hours before Meidroth took the field. “You look at what he brings to the table, and to be able to bring someone like Chase Meidroth up here and get Major League experience is going to serve him well, which will ultimately serve the organization well."

Jordan Leasure, 26, and Brooks Baldwin, 24, are first-hand examples of how that big league experience can have influence. The right-handed reliever and switch-hitting infielder saw significant time across 121 losses with the 2024 White Sox, and while there were as many downs as there were ups, they have built from that time and have taken a step forward in the early part of the ’25 season.

Baldwin is hitting .268, up from .211 in ’24, has played defensively at every position but pitcher, catcher and first base over 14 games and delivered the walk-off hit against Aroldis Chapman in Saturday’s 3-2 victory. Leasure, who finished the ’24 campaign with a 6.32 ERA in 33 games, has a 3.38 ERA in six games this season.

“It showed me what I needed to do routine-wise more than anything,” Baldwin said. “It showed me how to get ready for every game.”

“I learned a lot, and a lot of it is intangible stuff, not really things you can describe,” Leasure said. “Being in this atmosphere and getting used to the environment is the main thing.”

Environment, as in handling the cheers and jeers while pitching.

“There are games where you are on the mound, and you feel like you are by yourself and the fans are booing you,” Leasure said. “You learn from that, too. If that happens again, I’ve already been here before. It doesn’t bother me as much.”

More top young players will join the White Sox this season. Meidroth is one of the four who came from Boston in its trade for Garrett Crochet, the ace hurler who took a no-hitter into the eighth during Sunday’s dominant start against his former team before it was broken up by … Meidroth. Catcher Kyle Teel (No. 2 White Sox prospect, No. 29 overall, per MLB Pipeline), is another part of the Crochet deal and a candidate to move from Triple-A Charlotte, as is catcher Edgar Quero (No. 6, No. 62).

Shortstop Colson Montgomery (No. 4, No. 36) is shaking off a rough start for Charlotte with hits in two of his last three games, including a homer Sunday. And then there’s the elite pitching trio of Double-A Birmingham hurlers in lefties Noah Schultz (No. 1, No. 15) and Hagen Smith (No. 3, No. 31), as well as right-hander Grant Taylor (No. 7), who all could be throwing Major League innings by September.

Learn now, gain the experience and the hope to win much more in the future.