White Sox prospect Yoan Moncada better learn from Red Sox days

Chicago White Sox fans hope to have better luck cheering for No. 1 prospect Yoan Moncada than the Boston Red Sox did. Has he learned from his first call-up?

Chicago White Sox fans have had very little to cheer about this season, as the team sits with the absolute worst record in the American League (38-54). At 9.5 games out of a Wild Card spot and every other team in front of them, the White Sox had to make changes in their roster through a big trade and some minor league maneuvering.

The changes made room for the team’s No. 1 prospect Yoan Moncada to be called up on Wednesday against the red-hot Los Angeles Dodgers. The second baseman went 0-for-2 with a walk in a 9-1 loss.

A number of tweets referenced by Rob Goldberg of Bleacher Report suggest the White Sox media will take anything positive to discuss at this point. However, the most important part of Goldberg’s words were ‘second baseman’, not third base.

Why? Because of his very short time in Boston.

When the Red Sox first gained his services, Moncada was given phenom status by every scout observing his game in Cuba. Moncada was sought after so strongly that he received a $31.5 million signing bonus.

One can imagine that Bostonians had very high expectations indeed if their beloved ball club was willing to spend that much money on a young man, almost still a boy at the time, who had not even seen one single MLB-level pitch. And, why wouldn’t they? Moncada was ranked by Baseball America as the best MLB prospect on the top 100 list at the midway point last season.

At that point, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com mentioned how Moncada was being introduced to third base while with the organization’s Double-A affiliate in Portland. Even though Moncada had made previous mention that he preferred second base to any other position, the Red Sox also had to think about one of their leaders Dustin Pedroia being signed well into the future to play second base at Fenway Park. If Moncada was to break into the majors, it would have to be at the hot corner.

The result was pretty ugly. In nine games late in the season, Moncada hit .190 with an RBI, two walks and 12 strikeouts in only 21 at-bats. In 35 innings, he made an error and posted a .933 fielding percentage at third base, far below the league average.

Now, before people rise up to protect the young lad, concessions need to be made. Moncada had only been in the United States for just over a year. The culture shock alone could be enough to be distracting; trying to learn a new language and a set of new social customs is never easy, let alone trying to do it while hitting a 98-mph fastball every night.

Throw in having to field a new position for only a short time before having to prove himself in front of one of the toughest fan bases in professional sports, and one has a possible catastrophe brewing, which was the case with Moncada’s final days in Boston.

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While the fans may have been less than impressed, to say the least, with Moncada’s performance before heading into the postseason, the team’s brass must have felt mixed emotions. They poured a great deal of investment into Moncada and the fees surrounding his acquisition.

They could see his talents in the minors surfacing to a point where they felt that he was ready to take the next step in his career. They would not just take Moncada’s small sample size in the majors as the peak of their interests in him.

Clearly, neither did the White Sox, who asked for him in a blockbuster trade. Moncada headlined the prospect package that went to Chicago in exchange for ace left-hander Chris Sale.

This year, in 80 games for the White Sox Triple-A affiliate, Moncada hit for a slashline of .282/.377/.447 with 12 home runs and 36 RBI. He also had 102 strikeouts to 49 walks in 309 at-bats. To put the strikeouts into perspective, 12th-ranked Rafael Devers has 59 strikeouts in 306 at-bats between Boston’s Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. Seventh-ranked prospect Ozzie Albies, part of the Atlanta Braves organization and a fellow second baseman, has hit .290 with seven home runs and 38 RBI, while posting just 78 strikeouts to 25 walks in 365 at-bats.

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Expectations should be as they should for any other rookie. The move to keep Moncada at second base seems to have settled him down at the plate a bit, as he posted a .969 fielding percentage there in the minors; however, the strikeouts continue to be a problem. Sure, he can smack the ball a ton for his age, but that’s when he actually makes contact.

A third of his at-bats are strikeouts, suggesting a need for a keener eye to hit quality pitching. White Sox fans should, therefore, not hold their breath just yet that Moncada will be pounding pitches over the fences any time soon.

Then again, a few years back, the Red Sox debated whether Mookie Betts or Xander Bogaerts could make it in the majors compared to Rusney Castillo, another Cuban phenom at the time. Since then, both Betts and Bogaerts have been All-Stars while Castillo has disappeared into minor league obscurity.

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