Rookie Drew Romo steps in as catcher, replacing the struggling Reese McGuire. Can Romo ignite the offense and solidify the backup role?
The Chicago White Sox made a much-needed move before Saturday’s game against the Washington Nationals.
They designated catcher Reese McGuire for assignment and selected catcher Drew Romo’s contract from Triple-A Charlotte. Romo officially replaces McGuire on the active roster after the latter really struggled to begin the season.
McGuire hit just .172 with three RBI, two walks, and nine strikeouts across his 11 games with the White Sox. He was just not cutting it offensively, as his average exit velocity (74.3 mph), barrel rate (0%), hard-hit rate (9.5%), and squared-up rate (14.6%) were all extremely poor.
The White Sox simply couldn’t keep sticking with McGuire as the team’s backup catcher. He wasn’t providing much at the plate, and his defense wasn’t appealing either. The nine-year veteran ranked in the bottom half of the league in pop time, caught stealing above average, and blocks above average.
It’s about time that Chicago called up Romo amid a strong start to the season down in Triple-A. The 24-year-old batted .298 with four home runs, three doubles, 11 RBI, and one stolen base across 17 games with the Charlotte Knights
Romo didn’t necessarily hit the ball hard in his limited plate appearances with the Knights, totaling an 86.4 mph average exit velocity, a 29.7% hard-hit rate, a 31.9% whiff rate, and a .209 expected batting average.
However, he deserves to get his shot. McGuire was becoming a major liability at the plate, and Romo should be a slight upgrade over McGuire at that backup catcher position for the time being.
Romo was claimed off waivers by the White Sox in early January to give the team some catcher depth. He only appeared in three Major League games with the Rockies last year, but he did hit .258 with 18 extra-base hits in 65 Minor League games.
Romo is expected to be Edgar Quero’s backup moving forward. Although he is not in the White Sox’s starting lineup on Saturday, he could see his first start of the season in the series finale against the Nationals on Sunday.
Romo should remain with the White Sox until Kyle Teel is eventually ready to return from his hamstring injury. However, it could be some time until Teel returns to the White Sox’s roster. He has not yet begun his rehab assignment and is still dealing with some hamstring tightness.
That means Romo will have some time to prove his potential with the White Sox.