Tim Elko's Power Surge Continues With Triple-A Charlotte Knights

Charlotte Knights first baseman Tim Elko hit two home runs and raised his OPS to 1.086 with a huge game Thursday in Triple-A.

Tim Elko (91) celebrates with Chicago White Sox teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Chicago Cubs in spring training at Sloan Park. | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

You won't find his name on the list of top-30 White Sox prospects. But from a production standpoint, Tim Elko is near the top of several hitting categories among White Sox minor leaguers.

The 26-year-old added to his impressive 2025 campaign with two home runs Thursday with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights.

His first home run came on an 0-2 count in the fourth inning. Elko reached down for a sweeper and pulled it over the left field fence. It left his bat with a 100 mph exit velocity and flew 360 feet.

Tim Elko on Thursday night in Scranton @TimElko pic.twitter.com/ljfmZcLsEi

— John Elko (@johnelko) April 25, 2025

He showed some versatility on the second long ball. In the sixth inning, he drove a first-pitch sinker to the opposite field for a 362-foot home run with a 102.8 mph exit velocity.

Elko's big night raised his 20-game slash line to .356/.429/.658/1.086 through 84 plate appearances. He has 13 hits, 26 runs, four doubles, six home runs, 15 RBI, nine walks and 25 strikeouts.

The White Sox drafted the 6-foot-3, 250-pound first baseman in the 10th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Ole Miss. He broke through to Triple-A last season and totaled nine home runs and 33 RBI, along with a .289 batting average and an .833 OPS in 219 plate appearances.

The sample size is small, but Elko recorded just one hit – a home run – in 12 spring training at-bats ahead of the 2025 season. He also had four walks and five strikeouts.

The White Sox could use Elko's power as they're in a five-way tie for 24th among MLB teams with 19 home runs in 2025, though there's always the chance that a player's Triple-A stats don't translate to the big leagues.

Andrew Vaughn is the White Sox main first baseman, appearing in 20 of 25 games. Nick Maton, Lenyn Sosa and Bobby Dalbec have filled in the gaps. Vaughn has five hits in the last four games, though he's still batting just .165 with a .497 OPS, three home runs and 10 RBI.

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