Tempering Enthusiasm: Oscar Colas Edition

Throughout the rebuild and three seasons of the "window," we've seen multiple high-end prospects ascend through the White Sox system and arrive in Chicago. This team has three former top-five prospects in the sport on the current roster: Yoan Moncada, Eloy Jimenez, and Luis Robert. All three have had varying levels of success and overall performance levels that have not been in line with their prospect pedigrees.

Oscar Colas, from a prospect standpoint, is not on the same level as those three were during their time in the Sox farm system. Yet, the buzz surrounding him feels like it's just as loud within the fan base at the moment. Across most publications, Colas ranks somewhere between No. 75 and 85 on top-100 lists, which is a far cry from where his compatriots ranked before arriving in Chicago.

Last season, when he was tearing up Double-A Birmingham, I wrote about how Colas compared to recent Sox power-hitting prospects at the team's toughest offensive environment in the minor leagues. I was widely criticized then for not believing that he should be called up for the season's final month, and I stand by what I wrote at the time.

Given that the team did nothing to address its issues in right field with any level of veteran certainty, the talk for much of the spring has been about Colas breaking camp and heading Houston for Opening Day. But is it the right thing to do? Does Colas still have more room for growth before stepping into the box against the best pitchers on the planet each night?

Breaking The Mold

So, can Oscar Colas be the prospect that lives up to the hype and is able to make an immediate impact at the corner of 35th/Shields? He's put up good numbers thus far in Cactus League play, and while I'm a firm believer that you must #SetTheTone in Arizona, there are some contrasting data points from his time across the minor leagues in 2022.

With each ascending level, Colas' bat-to-ball skills saw a decline. Yes, we're talking about an extremely small sample size in Triple-A of only 33 plate appearances, but the upward movement across the White Sox system saw a consistent theme with Colas — a declining walk rate coupled with an elevated strikeout rate. These are certainly noteworthy for any prospect.

If Colas is struggling to be selective in the batter's box while not seeing the best pitching the planet has to offer, he could become an easy victim for pitchers feasting off his inexperience. Much like we've seen from Luis Robert in his time with the Sox, Colas could fall prey to pitchers using his aggressiveness against him, particularly outside the strike zone.

It's not all doom and gloom for Colas, however. With each level of the minor leagues, his power output increased. He saw a notable increase in slugging percentage at each affiliate.

It certainly is encouraging to see Colas have increased power output as he continues to make his way to the corner of 35th/Shields. For a team that was devoid of power for the 2022 season, it desperately could use Colas providing increased thump in the lineup.

For Colas to realize his offensive potential, however, he will have to find a way to improve his bat-to-ball skills and plate discipline. If he is swing-happy ala Luis Robert, he will likely be exposed initially and the natives will once again be restless with a prospect not living up to the hype. If he can display enhanced plate discipline and selectivity in the batter's box, he will be better able to tap into the explosive power that we know is in his bat.

Slow Your Roll

For all the good we've seen and read about Oscar Colas this spring, I think it's important that we scale back our enthusiasm at this point. He is not a finished product, and there are still valid concerns about his offensive approach.

I think we all collectively want Colas to come up and make an immediate impact because that would go a long way toward helping the 2023 White Sox be successful. However, if we've learned anything from other recent prospects, we should look for there to be some growing pains initially.

I get the sense many fans are believing he will be the secret weapon for this team to get back on track, but I think that is a presumptuous position. We've been burned not long ago by players on this roster that were of a much higher pedigree than Colas is today, and some scars take a long time to heal.

Oscar Colas may very well be a key cog in the 2023 White Sox success, and I want that to happen. I'm not getting up for the letdown again, though. I need to see it no matter how much I want to believe it.