Drew Thorpe likely to start Tuesday, Nick Nastrini optioned to minors

Drew Thorpe has shown the White Sox brass that he can bypass Triple-A Charlotte and head straight to the majors.

The Sox will get a look at one of their top prospects as manager Pedro Grifol announced Sunday that Thorpe is likely to start vs. the Mariners on Tuesday.

Thorpe came to the Sox in the Dylan Cease trade. In 11 starts at Double-A Birmingham, Thorpe is 7-1 with a 1.35 ERA.

“He’s a strike-thrower, he’s a competitor and he’s got a plus-plus-plus changeup,” Grifol said. “He knows how to pitch, he's calm and has a really good demeanor. [I’m] looking forward to seeing him pitch at this level because he looks like a big leaguer.”

Thorpe’s changeup grades out at a 70, according to Fangraphs, with strong command. It's his best pitch in his arsenal as his fastball is graded out at a 35. Lack of a plus fastball doesn’t dim Thorpe's potential for Grifol.

“I’ve seen a lot of pitchers without a [Garrett]Crochet fastball that have had Hall of Fame and big-time careers in the Major Leagues,” Grifol said. “Let’s not forget about the art of pitching and mixing pitches and understanding the game and game management.

"Every pitcher here in the Major Leagues has to have some type of weapon and some type of above-average pitch. This kid has as close to an 80 changeup as you could possibly have.”

Bringing Thorpe to the majors allows the team to gauge where he’s at in his development and what else he needs to improve on. The team has also shown, with right-hander Nick Nastrini, that they’re willing to send guys back down.

Ideally, for the Sox, Thorpe comes up and proves he belongs, but progression isn’t linear. If he needs more development — especially after skipping Triple A — they will adjust accordingly.

The organization is at the nascent stage of their rebuild. Players will continue to be called up, sent down and released as the Sox identify players who fit the culture they're trying to build.

“It gives us the opportunity to see how close they are or if they’re here already,” Grifol said. “These are the things we got to continue to do moving forward just to see where we are as an organization. It’s a really good move."

Nastrini optioned

After pitching 4 ⅓ innings of one-run baseball Saturday, Nastrini was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte. He's got to continue working on his command.

“He’s a big part of the future here; a huge part of the future, but there’s some things we have to iron out,” Nastrini said. “We talked to him about it, controlling the running game, economizing pitches and he did great.”

It’s fair to wonder what the benefit of Nastrini returning to the minors to work on his game is compared to the majors. Grifol said the “more controlled environment” is why it’s more beneficial for Nastrini to be in Charlotte.

Roster moves

The Sox selected the contract of left-hander Sammy Peralta on Sunday. The Sox claimed Peralta, 26, in May.

Peralta has pitched 3 ⅔ scoreless innings for the Sox. He gives the team another arm in the bullpen.

“Sammy gives us some versatility, he helps us against lefties and gives us some length,” Grifol said.