Kyle Teel Reaps Rewards Of Adaption With Callup To White Sox
A lot goes into being a top-end catching prospect.
Kyle Teel has had to learn a slate of new pitchers and a new manner of crafting game plans ever since he was sent to the White Sox last offseason as the headliner of the return for Garrett Crochet.
The speed with which Teel can build a scouting report on TruMedia is a metric he uses to track his progress. It’s also come with an important lesson.
“I thought I was a really, really good receiver out of college,” said Teel, whom Boston drafted 14th overall out of Virginia in 2023. “But after I’ve learned so much in pro ball, I realize I was just an average receiver in college, and now I can really step up my game with my glove path.”
With all that in mind, there’s no ambiguity when Teel steps into the batter’s box. He takes a big leg kick, he loads his hands deep, and unfurls a decisive uppercut lefthanded hack.
Teel is trying to lift and pull the ball. He practiced it with clear intent at Triple-A Charlotte and ended his initial International League time with a .295/.394/.492 batting line and eight home runs in 50 games prior to his callup to Chicago on June 6.
“The key for Kyle—and he is very aware and working on it—is making sure those big moves don’t happen too fast,” White Sox director of hitting Ryan Fuller said.
“He has a tendency to make really fast, herky-jerky moves, where they kind of stall out, and he has to make compensating patterns to get back in the zone.”
Teel took ground balls at first base while with Charlotte, and he can clearly provide a short-term offensive boost to an anemic White Sox offense. Long-term, Teel knows where he’s put the work in.
“I’m a catcher at the end of the day,” Teel said. “I think my numbers prove it, and I’m really solid defensively. At the same time, any way I can get to the big leagues and help that team win, it doesn’t matter where I’m playing.”
