Chicago White Sox To Promote First Baseman Tim Elko
CHICAGO – It's Tim Elko time on the south side.
The White Sox are promoting Elko from Triple-A to the major league team for Saturday's game against the Miami Marlins at 6:10 p.m. CT at Rate Field. The news was first reported by Vinnie Duber of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Elko has crushed the ball for the Charlotte Knights this season. Among qualified Triple-A hitters, he ranks sixth in hits (39), tied for first in home runs (10), tied for 10th in RBI (23), fifth in batting average (.348), seventh in on-base percentage (.431), second in slugging percentage (.670) and second in OPS (1.100) through 31 games and 130 plate appearances.
"He's obviously been swinging really well," White Sox manager Will Venable said. "We're excited to add him to the lineup and see what he can do. He's a great guy in the clubhouse. He can defend. Obviously, the work he's done at the plate speaks for itself. Excited to see him."
Venable said Elko and Andrew Vaughn both will be in the lineup Saturday, but he hasn't committed to who will be the first baseman and designated hitter.
"[Elko] deserves some runway," Venable said. "And we'll give him some looks in different spots."
White Sox rookie catcher Edgar Quero was teammates with Elko in Triple-A to begin the season, and he's excited to be back on the same team.
"He's a pretty good guy, man, pretty good teammate. So happy to have him here tomorrow," Quero said after Friday's game. "He's a pretty good hitter, and I know he's gonna help the team a lot. ... He's a power hitter, but he can control the zone pretty well."
"He's a good leader, too, in the clubhouse. He's a guy like he's always funny. He's having fun every time. He likes to talk to everybody. He's a really good teammate."
The 26-year-old first baseman is listed at 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds, and he bats and throws right-handed. The White Sox selected him in the 10th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Ole Miss.
White Sox director of player development Paul Janish shared his thoughts on Elko's strong start last Saturday.
"The thing that you have to touch first is the makeup of the player," Janish said. "The effect that he has, the impact he has on his teammates and even on staff, honestly. Just the kind of guy you really root for, number one. To his credit, he’s always been a guy that you just assumed was going to hit a wall. His swing and miss, and this and this. And to his credit, he’s a competitor, he’s played well throughout the minor leagues."
"We talked about earning promotions and that’s what he’s done throughout the minor leagues. He’s off to a great start in Charlotte. To answer the question, he is controlling what he can control. In terms of when that opportunity will come, that’s hard to predict. There’s needs and other circumstances that influence going on to the major-league level for him."
"But give Tim a ton of credit. He has adjusted and has hit the ball even harder. He has a better two-strike approach right now. He’s getting big hits in certain situations against tough right-handed pitchers, which is something he’s going to have to do. Just can’t say enough about the kid, the makeup of the player and the numbers on the field speak for themselves. He’s putting himself in a position to be considered, for sure. We’ll have to wait and see when his opportunity presents itself in terms of the major-league level."
It's unknown at this point what move the White Sox will make in order to clear space for Elko on the major league roster. Chase Meidroth was scratched from Friday's lineup with right shoulder soreness, and the team considers him day-to-day.
Elko has played first base in 28 games and designated hitter in three games this season. Vaughn has been the main first baseman for the White Sox, though Miguel Vargas got the start there on Friday. Nick Maton leads the White Sox with 14 games at designated hitter, but 12 players have manned that spot in at least one game.
Related stories on the Chicago White Sox
- MEIDROTH SCRATCHED: Rookie Chase Meidroth was scratched from Friday's lineup, and is considered day-to-day with right shoulder soreness. CLICK HERE
- TAUCHMAN REHAB ASSIGNMENT: Mike Tauchman is on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain, but he's beginning a rehab assignment Saturday. CLICK HERE
- FRIDAY PREVIEW: The Palatine, Ill. native played close to home the last two seasons with the Chicago Cubs. Across 217 games, he hit 15 home runs and drove in 77 runs, good for a .732 OPS. In 2023, he was sixth among Cubs hitters with a 2.7 WAR. CLICK HERE
- POPE LEO XIV IS A WHTE SOX FAN: John Prevost – the brother of Robert Prevost, who was elected pope on Thursday – said in an interview with WGN that Robert is a fan of the Chicago White Sox, not the Cubs. CLICK HERE
Jack Ankony is the beat writer for “Chicago White Sox 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