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What to Expect from White Sox Catcher Kyle Teel

Originally posted on New Baseball Media
By Chris Studley | Last updated Jun 6, 2025 10:12 AM ET

The White Sox are reportedly promoting catching prospect Kyle Teel. Teel was a renowned hitting prospect with the University of Virginia before the Red Sox drafted him in 2023. Less than two years and one trade later, Teel continued to produce at a strong level.

A Look at Teel

The White Sox acquired former first-round pick Kyle Teel last winter in the Garrett Crochet trade, adding yet another high-end catcher to their farm system.

A former standout at the University of Virginia, Teel showed impressive bat-to-ball skills en route to moving up the Red Sox organization quickly. Teel made it to Double-A by the end of the 2023 season — the year he was drafted. The ex-UVA star slashed .288/.386/.433 (.819 OPS) across 112 games last season.

Teel finished 2024 in Triple-A and began there to start 2025. He’s hit for more power (.197 ISO), with eight home runs and 19 extra-base hits across 50 games with Charlotte (AAA). As of June 5, Teel is tied for 14th in hits (54) among International League hitters. He walked 30 times, tied for 13th in the circuit.

The White Sox prospect will whiff with regularity, as indicated by the 28.7% Whiff% and 54 strikeouts. Additionally, he chased pitches 26.2% of the time out of the zone.

But for Teel, there’s a lot to like. He takes a lot of pitches (4.33 P/PA), and he can hit for power but also work all fields with his approach.

One other note on Teel: the 23-year-old got on top of the ball more this season. His 1.4 GO/AO ratio in 2025 is far higher compared to his past marks.

Defensively, Teel’s shown to be adept at throwing out base runners. He posted a 20% CS% in 2024 and an even better one this year. This season, Teel owned a 32.9% CS%.

Teel spent all of his time in the field this season as a catcher. However, he told the media earlier this month, after receiving a Minor League accolade, that he was getting work at first base during batting practice sessions.

The White Sox have not confirmed the promotion of Kyle Teel. However, the Teel family’s baseball school posted on X that he will be selected.

Kyle Teel gets the call! @whitesox @espn pic.twitter.com/ckjqH7XdHM
— TeelsBaseball (@TeelsBaseball) June 5, 2025

Analysis

Teel is the second notable catching prospect to get moved up to the Majors this season. Edgar Quero, acquired via trade two years ago, was promoted to Chicago in mid-April.

Quero’s been effective in the White Sox lineup thus far. The 22-year-old Quero posted excellent 16.4% Chase% and 10.6% BB% rates over his first 38 games as a Major Leaguer.

However, Teel — at some point — was going to need to get a look. While Teel might not be as strong of an on-base threat, he is an excellent hitter with enough pop to be a solid Major Leaguer.

The question, however, will be how the White Sox work both into the catching rotation and their lineup as a whole. Not to mention, what the White Sox will ultimately do with Korey Lee.

This article first appeared on New Baseball Media and was syndicated with permission.

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