Eight members of the White Sox minor league system played for the Glendale Desert Dogs this past week, two of whom are among the system’s Top 30 prospects. However, just six Sox will remain from here, as Eric Adler and Tim Elko are now on Team USA’s roster for the third World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12 tournament. The world’s Top 12 teams in this tournament will compete in Japan, Mexico, and Taiwan from November 9-24. Veteran manager Mike Scioscia will lead the team’s coaching staff as they try to bring home the gold! Stay tuned for updates on Adler and Elko after the tourney starts.

🚨 OUR PREMIER12 ROSTER IS HERE 🚨

📰: https://t.co/boxmZJRLDF pic.twitter.com/HMzjqVvipm

— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) October 21, 2024

Now, on to your Week 2 AFL update.

The Desert Dogs are currently tied with the Surprise Saguaros for first place in the league with a 7-4 record.

Eric Adler: The 23-year-old followed up a rough game where he got rocked for three runs with a really solid outing on Friday. In his only appearance of the week, he earned a hold for tossing two scoreless frames out of the pen. The righthander gave up only two hits and, most importantly, didn’t walk a batter.

Andrew Dalquist: The righty threw 26 pitches, 15 for strikes, in the Dogs’ 7-1 loss to the Saguaros on Thursday. He surrendered one run on two singles and a stolen base over one inning while striking out one.

D.J. Gladney: The Oak Park native has continued to struggle at the plate. In two contests, he went 1-for-5 with three Ks. While still waiting for his bat to heat up, he’s been on fire in the field, playing a flawless outfield so far in all three spots.

Tim Elko: His slash line of .269/.296/.654 with a .950 OPS dropped slightly from last week. The hole in his game continues to be the mighty Ks. During two games, he went 2-for-8 with five strikeouts. While he did add another bomb to his tally (3), those 13 total whiffs are a killer.

Called it! The Captain goes yard in his 1st AB. LFG🔴🔵 ⁦@TimElko⁩ ⁦@OleMissBSB⁩ #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/sy3YncgVdh

— Chris Pruden (@partypruden) October 18, 2024

Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa: Of all Chicago’s pitchers, AHT had the week’s best performance! In Wednesday’s loss to the Solar Sox, the 24-year-old threw two scoreless innings, giving up only one hit and one walk while fanning one.

Colson Montgomery: The Sox’s No. 2 prospect (MLB No. 37) is a sight for sore eyes. Montgomery is absolutely rocking the AFL both at the plate and on the field. In three games, he went 3-for-8 with four walks, two stolen bases, and two RBIs. The 22-year-old is slashing .400/.613/.650 with a 1.263 OPS. On the defensive side, for fans used to seeing him at shortstop, Montgomery has played five of his six games at third base, a position he hasn’t yet played in the minors for Chicago. It’s unclear if this is a tryout for that position or if it just happens to be how DD’s roster shakes out. With the departure of Yoán Moncada, there could be a hole at third. Still, there’s also quite a logjam of potential for that spot, including Brooks Baldwin, Miguel Vargas, Lenyn Sosa, and Bryan Ramos.

Colson Montgomery singles on a ground ball to left fielder Juan Guerrero. Nathan Church scores. Desert Dogs 1, Rafters 0, after 6 innings complete #AFL2024 #azfallleague #azfallleague2024 pic.twitter.com/dqxhSmkqTS

— Baseball Brew Crew (@beerbaseball_) October 19, 2024

Peyton Pallette: With his best outing so far of the AFL, the Sox’s No. 27 prospect surrendered no runs in his only appearance of the week. He gave up only one hit and one walk with two whiffs in 1 2/3 innings.

Grant Taylor: There was no action last week for Chicago’s No. 6 prospect.

Michael Turner: The 26-year-old made the most of his only contest during this stretch, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Turner has played all four of his AFL games behind the plate as he served as the starting catcher for the Barons all season, helping lead them to the Southern League Championship. While the Sox system certainly has no shortage of quality backstops, a solid AFL and spring training performance could help him find his way to Charlotte.

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Colson Montgomery Photo/Laura Wolff/Charlotte Knights