Up and Down

“Anointed” ballplayers interest me far less than the grinders do. The first are supposed to do what they do, and receive an infinite number of chances when success doesn’t come quickly. See Moncada, Yoan, and Giolito, Lucas. Ah, but Danny Mendick. Nobody thought he’d be anybody. Even after getting his first callup in 2020, Mendick has had to play the human yo-yo between the South Side and Triple-A Charlotte. By my count, Mendick has been sent down twelve times since the start of the 2020 season, including twice this year alone. I like anyone who plays hard and won’t take No for an answer. Mendick is a pest who refuses to be denied. Since taking over at shortstop for the injured Tim Anderson, Mendick has gone 12-for-37 (.325) with seven runs scored and six RBI’s, including two on a homerun last night in the White Sox 8-3 win over Texas. He’s also played a flawless shortstop. With luck, the pride of Rochester, New York, gets steady playing time at second once Anderson comes back, next week or so. Mendick was a 22nd round draft pick. Jake Burger was a first-rounder, so they’re not exactly two apples for comparison sake, but there are similarities. A series of injuries, coupled with a big dose of self-doubt and anxiety, left Burger on the outside looking in. Like Mendick, Burger has yo-yoed between Chicago and Charlotte, including a Triple-A stint in May. Since his recall on May 24th, the man has been lights out. Burger is hitting .302 over his last fifteen games and .435 over his last seven. Of his thirty-three hits so far on the season, seven have been doubles and seven homeruns, which translates into a .275 BA with seventeen runs scored and twenty RBIs. More, please. I’d love to know how much of the above is Mendick and Burger alone and how much is the result of coaching; too bad sportswriters aren’t interested in exploring the question. If they were, we might have a better handle on Gavin Sheets, who was sent down yesterday to address a funk that has him hitting just .204 with four homers this year. Sheets endured two trips to the minors last year to hit eleven homers with thirty-four RBIs in just 160 at-bats. After going 4-for12 in the postseason, he looked ready to take over the role of left-handed power hitter in the Sox lineup. But not this year, so far. Now, Sheets has to grind his way back and turn 2022 into 2021. I’ll be rooting for him.