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CHICAGO -- The Chicago White Sox's need to pay cash for a backup outfielder Monday brings to light all of the issues that have continued to torment highly-regarded prospect Jared Mitchell.

The former first-round draft pick, whom the White Sox continue to hold in high regard, can't seem to catch a break and the White Sox's acquisition of Casper Wells from the Oakland Athletics on Monday only seems to highlight that.

The early-season injury to Dayan Viciedo, and the fact that the team started the season with only four outfielders, has brought the White Sox's major-league ready depth into focus. On the lower levels, the White Sox have some of the most impressive outfield talent around, but when it comes to players who can jump into the major leagues now, it isn't nearly as strong.

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CHICAGO -- Struggling outfielder Jared Mitchell was sent down to Double-A Birmingham after starting the season with a .132 batting average over his first 53 at-bats at Triple-A Charlotte.

After a 32-game stint in Triple-A last year, the White Sox hoped the former first-round draft pick could put together a productive season at the minor league’s highest level and move closer to making his major league debut. Instead he posted a .277 on-base percentage and a .170 slugging percentage in the early going.

Now, the 24-year-old Mitchell will return to Birmingham, where he had 10 home runs, 54 RBIs and an .808 OPS last season in 94 games and 334 at-bats.

In another move at Charlotte, Brent Morel was placed on the disabled list with an undisclosed injury. He last played Monday, striking out in the bottom of the ninth inning. Morel was batting .231 with a .764 OPS over his first 11 games played in Triple-A.

The two moves helped the Knights free up roster space for Blake Tekotte and Josh Bell, who were activated off the disabled list.

CHICAGO -- The Chicago White Sox weren’t going to be denied when it came to minor-league first baseman Lars Anderson.

In a rare Opening Day deal, the White Sox reacquired Anderson in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations. He was assigned to Triple-A Charlotte.

The White Sox had first claimed Anderson off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks this offseason but then designated him for assignment during spring training when they traded for infielder Conor Gillaspie. The Blue Jays claimed Anderson off waivers from the White Sox.

Most notable of the five roster moves the Chicago White Sox made Tuesday is the option of third baseman Brent Morel to Triple-A Charlotte.

Also optioned to Charlotte was right-hander Deunte Heath, while left-hander Daniel Moskos, infielder Carlos Sanchez and right-hander Zach Stewart were reassigned to minor-league camp.

The Morel move is far from a surprise. Coming off a lumbar back strain last season that had him on the disabled list for nearly three months, Morel was hoping to force himself on a crowded roster this spring.

He came into camp fit and with a swing that coaches were raving about, but wasn't able to deliver on the field despite numerous chances. Heading into Cactus League play Tuesday, Morel's 18 games were more than anybody in camp. He hit two home runs, but batted just .216 and had as many strikeouts as hits.

With Jeff Keppinger signed this offseason and expected to play third base, Morel's challenge to make the roster already was a big one. When camp started his chances took another hit when the White Sox acquired left-handed hitting third baseman Conor Gillaspie from the San Francisco Giants.

While playing in one less game this spring, Gillaspie has batted .303 with two home runs and 10 RBIs to Morel's three. In fact, Gillaspie is tied with Dayan Viciedo for the team lead in RBIs.

Sanchez, a top infield prospect in the organization, still is aimed for more development. The White Sox had no intention of having him make the major league roster as a utility player, preferring that he gets at-bats every day in the minor leagues so his growth can continue.

Stewart, who was reacquired this winter when he was claimed off waivers, was battling for a potential spot-starter role if John Danks (shoulder) wasn't able to start the season on time. Dylan Axelrod has emerged as the leader for that role, though, if needed.

The White Sox have 36 players remaining in big-league camp leaving them with 11 more moves to make before the season starts April 1 at home against the Kansas City Royals.

The Chicago White Sox made 10 spring-training roster moves Monday, reducing the number of players in major league camp to 45.

Outfielders Keenyn Walker and Trayce Thompson were among those reassigned to minor-league camp. Also reassigned were outfielder Stefan Gartrell, right-hander Erik Johnson, infielder Seth Loman, infielder Marcus Semien and left-hander Scott Snodgress.

Right-hander Simon Castro and left-hander Santos Rodriguez were optioned to Triple-A Charlotte, while right-hander Nestor Molina was optioned to Double-A Birmingham.

Walker, the 47th overall pick in the 2011, managed to help his cause with a triple and double among his five Cactus League hits, while showing some of the speed that helped him to 56 steals at two separate minor league stops last season. He did strike out eight times in 20 at-bats, though.

Thompson struggled in his short time with the big club. The second-round pick in 2009 went hitless over 14 at-bats, but did manage to walk four times and score a pair of runs. Thompson, who turns 22 on Friday, has played just 20 games over the Single-A level, though, and remains highly regarded in the system.

Semien helped raise his stock with five hits over 11 at-bats in the Cactus League, including a home run and four RBIs. The sixth-round pick out of Cal has yet to play above the Single-A level.

All players involved in Monday's moves remain eligible to play for the White Sox in Cactus League games if needed.

So far, spring training is working out just as Chicago White Sox outfield prospect Jared Mitchell had hoped.

The all-around athlete with the shockingly solid physique – he has washboard abs on his washboard abs – knew that making the major league roster was an extreme long shot, but he just hoped to get attention for his play on the field. Mission accomplished.

In the seven Cactus League games Mitchell has played, he has collected five hits in 13 at-bats for a .385 batting average. More importantly, his 1.275 OPS has shown impressive run-producing capabilities.

Granted, the sample size is small, but it’s not like he gets huge chunks of time to play in front of the major league coaching staff so every little bit helps.

Outside of an injury to somebody on the big league squad, though, Mitchell is still targeted for Triple-A Charlotte when the season begins.

“Whenever the organization feels I’m needed, I’m ready to go,” Mitchell said. “However I can help that team or any team, I want to win. That’s all that matters to me. At the end of the day, we all want to win. That’s what it’s all about.”

The former LSU wide receiver appears to have his baseball legs under him now. The White Sox knew when they drafted him with the 23rd overall selection in 2009 that his maturation as a baseball player would take some time.

His timetable was set back even further when he tore a tendon in his ankle during spring training in 2010 and missed the entire season.

After a modest rebound in 2011 at Single-A Winston-Salem, Mitchell showed last year at Double-A Birmingham that he was feeling good again. He stole 20 bases, put up a .440 slugging percentage and hit 10 home runs in 94 games as opposed to the nine he hit in 129 games at Single-A.

He ended the season with a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte, where he drove in 13 runs in 36 games.

“The thing on Jared from the time we drafted him, when he was part-time baseball player, part-time football player, was about repetition and at-bats,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “That was compounded by the fact the injury cost him a year so our plan from the start has always been get him out there playing in games. We needed to continue to do that as he comes back from injury. That hasn’t changed significantly at this point.

“I do not see, and stranger things have happened, but I don’t see us taking him come the end of spring. Instead he’ll be playing on an everyday basis at Charlotte pushing us to hopefully to bring him up based on his performance as the season goes on.”

At Charlotte, Mitchell will be in line to become the first in the wave of talented minor league outfielders to arrive on the South Side. Others include Trayce Thompson and Keenyn Walker, who are also in big league camp. A little further back there is Courtney Hawkins, the club’s first-round pick in 2012 that is already considered by Baseball America as the top prospect in the organization.

As the White Sox put together potential trade proposals this winter, everybody who was witness to Mitchell’s recent play insisted that he remain in the organization. The big goal with Mitchell now appears to be teaching him the ability to make adjustments.

The left-handed hitter has shown a knack for delivering in a new situation, but hasn’t shown the ability to deliver sustained success.

At Double-A last year, Mitchell batted .341 in April, but just .214 for the rest of his stay there. Then at Triple-A, he had 10 hits in his first 33 at-bats (.303) over his first nine games before cooling off. When the International League playoffs arrived, he ramped it up again to go 9-for-27 (.333) in seven postseason games.

This spring it appears to be more of the same with his hot start.

“It’s a work in progress every day.” Mitchell said. “It’s what I’m here for every day. I do whatever I can to help whatever team I’m on to win. It’s really what I focus on every day.”

Winning seems to be the most reoccurring theme for Mitchell, and why not? At LSU, he and teammate Chad Jones became the first two student-athletes to win a BCS national title (2007) and a College World Series title (2009). Mitchell was named most outstanding player of that 2009 College World Series.

But despite the success in college, he hasn’t taken for granted what it takes to win on the next level.

“I can’t say planned for it,” Mitchell said when asked if the process to becoming a major leaguer has taken longer than he expected. “Pro ball is something new to me, like it is to everyone that comes in here. There was no sort of timetable or plan however it goes. I just work every day to try to get better every day. Whatever happens, happens.”

The 24-year old could end up in Chicago by the end of the season, but first there is some work to do.

“Of course, that’s what every person that comes into minor league ball, their goal is to get to the top,’” he said. “It’s a goal definitely. There’s a process to it, I understand that.”

It didn't take Brazil long to get eliminated from the World Baseball Classic, but that doesn't mean Chicago White Sox pitching prospect Andre Rienzo will return empty-handed.

The young right-hander was led to believe that he would start in Brazil's opener against Japan last week, but he ended up starting against another powerful squad in Cuba over the weekend.

In the end, Rienzo was tagged with the loss, but he was far from a disappointment as he held Cuba hitless over the first four innings. In fact, Rienzo had retired nine consecutive Cuba batters before a walk to lead off the fifth.

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CHICAGO – White Sox minor league infield instructor Ever Magallanes only has three career major-league games to his credit, but there was still a hall of fame that came calling.

Magallanes was one of three former players to be inducted in the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame this past weekend. In the ceremony in his native Mexico on Sunday, Magallanes ended up being overshadowed by fellow countryman Fernando Valenzuela. Also inducted was Houston Jimenez.

In 1991, Magallanes appeared in three games with the Cleveland Indians, coming to the plate three times. He never got a hit but worked a walk to leave him with a career .333 on-base percentage.

He still played 19 seasons, the first eight in the minor leagues where he posted a .298 batting average over 1,543 games.He was in the Indians, White Sox, Rangers and Diamondbacks organizations.

The last 11 seasons of his playing days came in the Mexican League, aside from 16 games with Triple-A Tucson in the 2004 season at age 38.

Magallanes has been a coach or manager in the White Sox’s minor-league system since 2009.

CHICAGO -- The No. 1 prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization in 2009 is now a member of the Chicago White Sox.

First baseman Lars Anderson was claimed by the White Sox off waivers Friday, bringing the team's 40-man roster to a full compliment of 40 players.

Anderson, 25, was actually claimed off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The 6-foot-5, 195-pounder was traded twice last year, the first time in July from the Red Sox to the Cleveland Indians and then again in December from the Indians to the Diamondbacks.

He was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks on Jan. 24.

Anderson, an 18th-round draft pick in 2006, has played in 30 major-league games for the Red Sox over three separate seasons, collecting eight hits in 48 at-bats (.167) with four RBIs.

After dominating the lower levels of the minor leagues, Anderson's production has tapered off in recent years. In 111 combined Triple-A games in the Red Sox and Indians organizations last season, he hit nine home runs and 59 RBIs with a .250 batting average and a .750 OPS.

Baseball America had ranked Anderson as the Red Sox's top farmhand heading into the 2009 season.

CHICAGO -- That quality left-handed bat the Chicago White Sox are looking for figures to come from their own ranks.

The question becomes: How long does it take for him to emerge?

One of the pressing questions facing general manager Rick Hahn this weekend at SoxFest is that left-side compliment the club has yet to acquire to help balance the lineup.

While shooting down rumors that the White Sox are interested in acquiring Jason Kubel, Hahn said former first-round draft pick Jared Mitchell could emerge as that lefty hitter.

“After Buddy Bell returned from instructional league this year, he wouldn’t shut up about where Jared is and we can’t possibly consider moving this guy because he’s ready to bust loose,” Hahn told the crowd at SoxFest on Saturday morning. “Guys who have been working with him since he arrived here on campus are starting to get that excitement in their voice.”

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CHICAGO -- The White Sox invited 20 players to spring training, including seven that have been signed to minor-league deals and another 13 from the club’s own system.

Players not on the club’s 40-man roster need to be invited to big-league camp separately.

The complete list of players who have agreed to minor-league deals are right-handers Jeff Gray and Ramon Troncoso, left-hander David Purcey, catcher Bryan Anderson, infielders Josh Bell and Steve Tolleson and outfielder Stefan Gartrell.

Those already in the minor-league system that will get an opportunity to show what they can do in big-league camp include: right-handers Erik Johnson and Jacob Petricka, left-handers Daniel Moskos and Scott Snodgress, catchers Michael Blanke and Kevin Smith, infielders Seth Loman, Tyler Saldino, Carlos Sanchez, Marcus Semien and Andy Wilkins, and outfielders Trayce Thompson and Keenyn Walker.

Seven of the 20 players invited have major-league experience, while five are ranked by Baseball America as top 10 White Sox prospects.

Thompson is the highest ranked at No. 2, while Sanchez is No. 3, Johnson is No. 4, Walker is No. 5 and Snodgress is No. 6. Walker was the White Sox first pick (47th overall) in the 2011 draft.

White Sox pitchers and catchers report to Glendale, Ariz., to begin spring training on Feb. 12. Position players are scheduled to report on Feb. 17.

CHICAGO -- Add yet another highly-touted outfield prospect to the Chicago White Sox system, as the club moved this week to sign TCU product Jason Coats.

Coats, a slugging left fielder, was selected in the 29th round by the White Sox in June despite suffering an ACL tear just weeks before the draft. Not only a .334 career hitter in his four seasons at TCU, Coats also drove in 201 runs and hit 33 home runs. His 69 career doubles are a school record.

His stock fell considerably after the May 20 injury, suffered while he was rounding first base in a game against San Diego State. Since Coats was a senior, the club had until May to sign him. He graduated last spring with a degree in accounting.

Coats' deal included a $1,000 signing bonus, making it a low-risk proposition for a player that could have a big upside. There are no indications on how long it will be before Coats is back to full speed.

The White Sox already boast a strong collection of outfield prospects that include Courtney Hawkins, Trayce Thompson, Keenyn Walker and Jared Mitchell. Coats would have plenty of catching up to do before reaching the level of that group.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Chicago White Sox don't figure to be too active when they participate in baseball's annual Rule 5 draft Thursday.

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CHICAGO -- One of the Chicago White Sox’s new major league coaches had a message for all the high-level outfield prospects in the system: It’s your turn to get here now.

The White Sox not only named Daryl Boston the team’s new first-base coach, he will also coach the outfielders. Those duties were previously held by Harold Baines, who will now serve as the assistant hitting coach to Jeff Manto.

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Whenever Joe Jackson joins a new team, he knows what’s coming.

Teammates hear his name and a light bulb goes on.

“Yeah, it’s kinda funny,” he says. “The first time I’m with a team, they’re like, ‘Oh, Shoeless,’ just joking around. Sometimes I let them go on with it and then tell them, ‘Hey, man, I really am related to him.’ Really, they can’t believe it.”

Joe Jackson is the great-great-great nephew of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, and he’s not about to say it ain’t so.

Though Shoeless Joe was one of the best hitters baseball has ever known, he’s forever associated with the Black Sox scandal and his banishment from the game. Yet for 20-year-old Joe Jackson, a catcher at The Citadel who has been playing in the Cape Cod League this summer, being a relative of Shoeless Joe is a source of pride.

The younger Joe grew up in Greenville, S.C., where his famous relative lived most of his life and died in 1951. In Greenville there’s a statue of the lifetime .356 hitter, as well as the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum and his well-visited gravesite.

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