Drew

Thorpe

Getz added that Thorpe is expected to have a normal offseason and be 100 percent for spring training after undergoing surgery back in September to remove a bone spur from his right elbow. The 24-year-old righty struggled to keep the ball in the yard last season in his first taste of the majors, but possesses one of the most electric changeups in the game. He’s a late-round dart throw in extremely deep mixed leagues.

The 23-year-old rookie right-hander was lit up for six runs over five innings in a loss to the Royals on Wednesday, and now he’ll head to the injured list with a flexor strain. No word yet on a potential timeline for his return but given the fact that the season means absolutely nothing to the White Sox, there’s no real need to rush him back. Unfortunately, that means he’s probably a drop in in most redraft leagues. Prelander Berroa was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to take his place on the active roster.

Thorpe’s arsenal, with the exception of his signature elite changeup, continues to get absolutely annihilated at the highest level as he surrendered a sky-high 97 mph average exit velocity on 15 batted balls in play against Kansas City, including a hanging slider that Freddy Fermin tattooed for a second-inning homer. The more alarming part here is that Thorpe generated just six swinging strikes, with five of those coming on his changeup, and finished with a calamitous 19 percent CSW. Yikes. He failed to record a strikeout and also handed out a pair of free passes. He’ll continue to start for the rebuilding White Sox, but he’ll need to make some necessary adjustments to thrive in the majors. He’ll aim for better results on Tuesday in a tasty matchup against the floundering Athletics.

Yuck. Thorpe was fantastic in his previous few starts. This was ugly. He almost escaped a bases-loaded jam scoreless in the first, but a two-run double by Jason Vosler was followed by an RBI double by Mitch Garver; and Josh Rojas, Dylan Moore and Victor Robles went back-to-back-to-back. This saw Thorpe’s ERA jump up to 4.81 from 3.03. He should be better — he can’t be worse — Wednesday against the Royals.

It’s Thorpe’s fifth straight quality start. His one drubbing at the hands of the Diamondbacks has obscured just how great a beginning Thorpe’s major league career is off to, but even with that, his ERA is down to 3.03 now. Seven of the 13 earned runs he’s allowed came in one of his seven starts.

It’ll be Chris Flexen, Jonathan Cannon and Drew Thorpe taking the ball during a three-game set against the Royals before Erick Fedde and Crochet draw their first second-half starts against the Rangers. The 25-year-old southpaw, who excelled earlier this week in the Midsummer Classic, figures to be one of the biggest names potentially on the move at the trade deadline. This could wind up being his final outing in a White Sox uniform.

Thorpe reeled off five shutout frames to kick off the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader before coughing up back-to-back homers to Brooks Lee and Carlos Correa in the sixth inning. The concerning part here for fantasy managers is that he notched only one strikeout in this one as he generated only five swinging strikes and finished with a lackluster 26 percent CSW. The 23-year-old top pitching prospect has held his own at the highest level through a handful of starts with a respectable 3.58 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 19/15 K/BB ratio across 32 2/3 innings (six starts). The strikeouts haven’t been there and it’s fair to wonder if the league is going to adjust and start really sitting on his below-average fastball.

The rookie right-hander punched out five batters on the night while issuing a pair of free passes. He held the Marlins scoreless through the first six frames, but returned for the seventh where he allowed a one-out double to Dane Myers before turning the ball over to the bullpen — and he ultimately scored. Thorpe generated 10 swings and misses on 90 pitches on the night — nine of those on his changeup — while posting an underwhelming CSW of 21 percent. He’ll see if he can replicate this success as he carries a 3-1 record, 3.38 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and an 18/14 K/BB ratio (26 2/3 innings) into his final start of the first half on Wednesday against the Twins.

Thorpe was originally scheduled to pitch against the Guardians on Thursday, but the White Sox are pushing him back a day. It’s certainly good news for fantasy managers as the Marlins are undoubtedly the better matchup. Thorpe has a 4.43 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in four starts with Chicago this season. He could be a streaming option in deeper mixed leagues.

Thorpe generated a lot of weak contact tonight, particularly with his slider; he threw the pitch just eight times, but the White Sox put it into play on five occasions and never any harder than 86 mph. Thorpe is 2-1 with a 4.43 ERA since debuting earlier this month. He’s an option in deeper mixed leagues, but probably not 10-teamers.