Jarred Kelenic entered spring training on a minor league deal, but a recent surge at the plate is giving the former top prospect a legitimate shot to make the White Sox Opening Day roster.
It’s been pretty clear—even from the moment he signed his minor league contract—that the Chicago White Sox are very fond of outfielder Jarred Kelenic.
Despite only being on a minor league deal, the White Sox gave Kelenic an out-of-the-ordinary introductory Zoom press conference with the media back in January. The organization spoke about director of hitting Ryan Fuller and how Kelenic was a player he was excited to work with.
There were also some clear mechanical adjustments already being made to Kelenic’s swing that were highlighted by both Kelenic himself and the team during those early meetings with the media.
“Hearing [the White Sox] talk about that, hearing them acknowledge the type of player I am, was reassuring,” Kelenic said. “And just the clear, crystal plan they had for how they wanted to attack it—it was really motivating for me.”
Kelenic was well aware of his tendency to get too leaned back in his posture, which lengthened his swing and delayed his barrel getting into the strike zone.
The White Sox independently identified that same issue, but they also saw the shell of a player profile that includes an average bat speed of 73.4 mph—well above league average and a strong foundation for sustainable power.
All of this being said, I still found it hard to believe that Kelenic would break camp with the White Sox Opening Day roster.
The odds were stacked against him from the moment spring training began simply because he was on a minor league contract. That deal gives the White Sox the flexibility to send him down without losing him to another team. Meanwhile, there are other outfielders on the 40-man roster—such as Everson Pereira and Derek Hill—who don’t have that same flexibility.
In order to make the team, Kelenic needed to be clearly the better option than Pereira or Hill—good enough that the White Sox would be comfortable designating one or both of them for assignment at the end of March.
For a while, it didn’t look like that was going to happen. Kelenic was hitting the ball hard on occasion but struggling to produce real results at the plate.
But all of a sudden, here we are just over two weeks away from the White Sox packing things up at Camelback Ranch and heading to Milwaukee for Opening Day, and Kelenic may now have the inside track to make the roster. He’s certainly doing himself plenty of favors with his recent play.
On Friday, Kelenic went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run in a White Sox win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. On Sunday, he followed that up by going 2-for-3 with a solo home run and two runs scored.
Just like that, he’s now 6-for-23 this spring training—good for a .261 batting average and an .857 OPS with two home runs and two stolen bases.
He’s also sitting in the 98th percentile in all of baseball in average exit velocity this spring.
Hill hasn’t performed poorly, but he comes with far less upside as a defense-first player who is already 30 years old. The White Sox know that. And an oblique injury has robbed Everson Pereira of his opportunity, as he hasn’t appeared in a single Cactus League game yet.
At this point, minor league options may be the only thing holding Kelenic back. It’s possible the White Sox don’t keep him with the big league club simply because of roster math, but it’s becoming impossible to deny that he’s making a strong case.
And personally, I would welcome the offensive upside Kelenic brings to the White Sox roster.
One week ago, I didn’t think we’d be having this conversation. But that just goes to show how quickly things can change during spring training.
And by that same logic, with two weeks still to go before final decisions need to be made, a lot can still happen.
But Jarred Kelenic is making a push—and his recent success at the plate deserves to be recognized.