CHICAGO – White Sox right-handed starter Jonathan Cannon was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte prior to Cleveland’s 9-5 victory in Friday night’s series opener at Rate Field, with the team recalling right-hander Wikelman González from Charlotte. González threw two perfect innings in relief.
This move was a bit surprising in that Cannon, 25, was the team’s most consistent starter during the 2024 season behind Garrett Crochet, and he had a 3.76 ERA this season going into a start on May 27 at the Mets. But Cannon, who allowed 10 runs over 8 2/3 innings combined against New York and in an ensuing 13-1 loss at home to the Tigers, was pitching through some back discomfort at that point.
Cannon was placed on the 15-day injured list on June 3 with a lower back strain and returned with a three-inning stint against the Giants on June 29. Over his past three starts, including Wednesday in Seattle, Cannon has allowed 19 runs (18 earned) in 12 innings, with six home runs and 13 strikeouts.
“We felt like it was a good time to give him a breather,” general manager Chris Getz said of Cannon. “He’d been fighting himself a little bit, searching, so we view it as an opportunity to get his confidence back. He’s a guy that needs to attack the zone. He’s got an ability to get quick early contact, but he kind of got away from that approach.
“His pitch counts were getting high. He wasn’t as productive, so we’ve got some things to work on. He’s still very early in his career and we believe in him, and we’ve seen an extended period of time being a successful starter. So he needs to go down there and get to work, and I’m sure he’ll be back here before he knows it.”
For the season, Cannon has a 4-9 record with a 5.34 ERA and 76 strikeouts over 96 innings in 19 games (17 starts). Those numbers follow a 5-10 showing with a 4.49 ERA over 23 games (21 starts) and 124 1/3 innings in 2024.
As for those pitch counts, Cannon threw 86 (58 strikes) in Pittsburgh on July 18 when he allowed one run in seven innings to start the team’s 10-9 run since the All-Star break. He threw 90 (58 strikes) over 4 1/3 innings at the Rays on July 23, 87 (57 strikes) in six innings against the Phillies on July 29 and just 59 (33 strikes) over 1 2/3 innings at the Mariners, when he allowed seven runs with three walks and one strikeout.
“He’s going to be just fine,” Davis Martin, who starts Sunday for the White Sox, said of his friend and rotation mate. “We all talked to him, and we understand what kind of pitcher he is and what kind of player he is for this team.
“Just a nice little reset, and he’ll be right back before we know it. He’s too good, he has too good of stuff, and his baseball knowledge, he’s way too smart to not be back up here and get back into gear. It’s sad, it sucks, he’s part of our group. We are going to miss him. But I don’t see him gone for very long.”
In-season resets with infielder Colson Montgomery (the White Sox No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline) and left-handed hurler Hagen Smith (their No. 3 prospect) previously have worked this season, with Montgomery going to the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League after prolonged struggles for Charlotte. Montgomery doubled, walked and scored a run Friday, and he has eight homers and 24 RBIs in 29 games for the White Sox.
Tyler Alexander will get the bulk work when Cannon’s next start hits the schedule.
“Sometimes you need a change of scenery for one second, one outing, and that can be the thing that flips the script,” Martin said. “I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he has a really good run down the stretch for us in late August, early September.”
“We still believe in him of course, like we believe in so many of our players,” Getz said. “And that's why we made the move. We know there’s a better version of Jonathan Cannon than what we’ve seen here recently.”
Cleveland jumped out to a 9-1 lead through four, with all nine runs charged to starter Aaron Civale, who took the mound with a scoreless streak of 15 1/3 innings and a streak of 17 1/3 innings without allowing an earned run. A late rally fell short for the White Sox (42-74), who have lost five straight.
“We're not there yet. We've got a lot of work ahead of us,” Getz said. “Most importantly, we're playing well right now, and we're going to look for ways to add to this club and find ways to beat our opponent. But the work doesn't stop.”