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Jack's Take: Tim Elko Looks Ready To Join Chicago White Sox

Tim Elko, a first baseman for the Triple-A Charlotte Knights, hit two more home runs on Sunday to raise his OPS to 1.163. The White Sox rank 26th in MLB in runs scored and shouldn't wait much longer to call him up.
Jack Ankony|
Chicago White Sox designated hitter Tim Elko (91) celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Chicago Cubs in spring training at Sloan Park.
Chicago White Sox designated hitter Tim Elko (91) celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Chicago Cubs in spring training at Sloan Park. | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

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Chicago White Sox

Another day, another Tim Elko home run.

Well, he actually hit two on Sunday and raised his season total to nine – at least two more than anyone in the minor leagues. The Charlotte Knights' 26-year-old first baseman also leads qualified Triple-A hitters in slugging percentage (.732), OPS (1.163), isolated power (.378) and wRC+ (197).

Meanwhile, the White Sox fell to an American League-worst 7-21 Sunday with a 3-2 loss to the Athletics in extra innings. First-year manager Will Venable's club ranks 25th or worse in MLB in runs, hits, home runs and on-base percentage, and last in batting average, slugging percentage and OPS.

Reaching the playoffs wasn't a preseason expectation and it's certainly not one now as the White Sox have a 0.0% chance to do so, according to FanGraphs. One player doesn't come close to changing that. But that wasn't the goal this season anyway, one year removed from losing a modern day MLB record 121 games.

The 2025 Chicago White Sox season was always going to be about figuring out which players could help build the next winning team however many years down the road. And after a scoring hot start in Triple-A, Elko has earned the opportunity to prove whether he can be part of that. It's only a matter of time until he gets his shot, and that should be as soon as the six-game homestand beginning Tuesday.

Looking at his minor league stats, some may wonder why Elko isn't already with the White Sox. A few reasons stand out.

First, he entered the season with just 48 games played at Triple-A, which would be a small amount for anyone before being called up to the big leagues. The sample size is extremely small at 12 at-bats, but Elko struggled in spring training with five strikeouts and a .083 batting average, though he hit one home run.

He's also been strikeout-prone throughout his career, without much recent progress. After joining the White Sox organization as a 10th round draft pick in 2022 out of Ole Miss, Elko had a strikeout percentage of 41.4% in 2022, 29.7% in 2023, 29.3% in 2024 and 28.4% this season. For context, just 17 MLB hitters have a strikeout percentage of 30% or higher. He'd be facing even better pitchers at the MLB level.

Elko's primary position is first base, and the White Sox seem hesitant to move off of Andrew Vaughn, the former No. 3 overall pick who's in his fifth MLB season. Third on the team with 109 plate appearances, Vaughn is off to a woeful start with a .157 batting average and a .476 OPS.

However, he's between the 75th and 88th percentile in MLB in expected slugging percentage, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, hard-hit percentage and squared-up percentage. That suggests he's getting unlucky and could soon see a spike in production. His expected batting average of .243 is in the 40th percentile, a significant jump from his actual figure.

Even if the White Sox still want to give Vaughn everyday at-bats moving forward, there should be room for Elko. The team recently designated Nick Maton for assignment, and he cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A. Maton led the White Sox with 14 games at designated hitters, and nine other players have appeared there through 28 games.

Recently called-up catching prospect Edgar Quero will take some of those at-bats at designated hitter. No one can catch every day, and his .868 OPS warrants plate appearances. But Elko has earned a chance to show what he can do, and the other options aren't too intriguing from a short or long-term standpoint.

If Elko fails, there's not much risk involved because the White Sox will be in the same position they're already in, just further into a season without any expectations to win. And if he succeeds, that's a step forward in the rebuilding process.

So let's find out.

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Jack Ankony
JACK ANKONY

Jack Ankony covers baseball for “Fastball on SI.” He has been with the Sports Illustrated network since 2022. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism in 2022. Follow Jack on Twitter @ankony_jack

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