Chicago White Sox Rookie Kyle Teel Not Expected To Play Outfield Moving Forward

CHICAGO –– The White Sox were in a pinch when Mike Tauchman left Thursday's game in the bottom of the ninth inning with right groin soreness. Only one position player on the active roster remained on the bench, so manager Will Venable made a move that he doesn't expect to become a common occurrence.

Kyle Teel entered the game in left field, far from his usual position as a catcher. But the rookie, who teammates and coaches frequently describe as an energy-booster, took it in stride.

"It’s like riding a bike," Teel said after Thursday's game. "Played outfield in college. Played for the collegiate national team in left and right field. Shag out there all the time, so I was just hoping they would hit me the ball."

"I take pride in my athleticism and wherever the team needs me at any point I’m willing to go."

Teel didn't get his wish, though, as the Cardinals scored twice in the 10th without testing the 23-year-old in his first major league appearance in the outfield. The White Sox couldn't respond, ultimately falling 8-6 in extras to complete the series sweep and match their longest losing streak of the season at eight games.

And barring another unforeseen circumstance, Teel likely won't get another shot in the outfield.

"Not unless we're in extra innings and an outfielder goes down and [Teel] is on the bench," Venable said after Thursday's game. "That was a pure emergency. No thought to make that a thing."

When Teel was named White Sox minor league player of the month for May, he mentioned taking ground balls at first base before games, despite not having played the position over the last five seasons in the majors, minors, college and summer leagues. Aside from catcher, where he's played 283 games during that span, he has logged just 29 games in the outfield, per Baseball Reference.

So if those numbers were to increase, he'd have to get new equipment, or continue sharing.

"Well, I don’t have a first base glove," Teel said before his MLB debut on June 6. "I’ve been using teammates’ first base gloves when I was in Charlotte, just getting ground balls. I really don’t know. I’m a catcher at the end of the day and that’s what I want to do for a long time. But obviously anyway I can help the team win."

White Sox general manager Chris Getz hesitated to draw conclusions based on where players warm up pregame. He referred to longtime Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez taking ground balls at shortstop, and White Sox catcher Korey Lee doing so at second base. They never played those positions in a game, and similarly, Getz wants Teel to focus on catching.

"Kyle is very athletic. He's capable of playing multiple positions quite honestly. But we believe in him as a catcher," Getz said on June 6. "That's where we feel like he's going to impact the game the most you know, with the way that Will and the staff utilize the roster and the versatility to give them as many weapons as possible. Obviously you get late in games and certain things happen, and you want to put the best foot forward in regards to optimizing a certain situation. It's not bad for a guy to have some level of comfort over there, but in the near-term, I certainly don't expect him to be playing first base."

Though Teel has limited experience at positions other than catcher, there are a few reasons why moving him around could be desirable. No one in MLB catches all 162 games, but Teel is a strong enough hitter – he slashed .295/.394/.492 in 50 Triple-A games this season – to warrant at-bats when he needs a day off behind the plate. He's already started two games as the White Sox designated hitter.

The White Sox are also working to develop another young catcher in Edgar Quero, who has caught in seven games since Teel's promotion two weeks ago. Quero has been capable at the plate, too, batting .276 with a .347 on-base percentage.

So for a White Sox offense that ranks 27th or worse in MLB in home runs, RBI, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, wanting Teel and Quero's bats in the lineup as frequently as possible is reasonable.

Of course, that can be achieved by one catching and the other serving as the designated hitter each game, which has been the case more often than not. But one or both being able to play another position would help lineup flexibility in the short and long term, though the White Sox have plenty of outfield depth.

The White Sox also don't want to put too much on their plate. After all, Teel and Quero are the two youngest catchers in MLB, and learning the nuances of the position and pitching staff is a lot to handle.

"I know with Teel, it's obviously with his athleticism, you can dream up on him playing a number of different positions," Venable said on June 6. "I think for those guys, as they're trying to figure out their way in this league, just limiting it to just one position is probably enough of a load right now."

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