Dash Players Find Success In Waves for Winston-Salem
Photo: Jeff Cohen
When a minor-league affiliate is functioning well, it is experiencing a lot of roster turnover as players demonstrate proficiency at one level and move to the next. And that’s precisely what happened in Winston-Salem as 21 players came up from Kannapolis throughout the 2026 season and almost as many moved onto Birmingham.
On opening day, the Dash batting order included Ryan Burrowes, Caleb Bonemer, Alec Briley, Colby Shelton, Anthony DePino and Grant Magill. All six would eventually need more of a challenge and be promoted to Birmingham.
As a result, the team that hoisted the South Atlantic League High-A trophy a few weeks ago was far different: Jackson Appel and Wes Kath would join the team after lengthy rehabs; Jeral Perez started the year in Double-A before a mid-season demotion; James Taussig, Rylan Galvan, Nick McLain, Derek Cerda, Bryce Eblin and Javier Mogollon would get promotions from Kannapolis; Ben Hartl would arrive via a late-season trade with Texas for Ben Peoples; and top draft pick Roch Cholowsky would make a cameo before an injury ended his year prematurely.
Another 2026 draftee, Braden Holcomb, would get promoted to Winston-Salem to provide emergency bench depth when Derek Cerda got hurt late in the year. An injury to George Wolkow suddenly thrust Holcomb into the starting lineup in the post-season where he more than held his own. Likewise, infielder and 2026 draftee Jake Berkland was added to the post-season roster for emergency depth. He did not get on the field but it was invaluable experience nonetheless.
With so much firepower promoted to Birmingham, several players needed to step up, and they did. George Wolkow moved into the cleanup spot and racked up 100 RBI, the only Sox minor leaguer to do so. Shortstop Kyle Lodise was the lone Sox minor leaguer in another elite group, the 20/40 club — with 20 homers and 42 stolen bases (Caleb Bonemer had 37/17).
Taussig was a critical late-season addition to the lineup, adding a big power bat to the lineup behind Wolkow and Perez. For his part, Perez collected 60 hits (20 were for extra bases) and 34 walks in 54 games in Winston-Salem. Mogollon was also an on-base machine with 37 hits and 25 walks in just 34 games. McLain was one of the hottest bats for the Dash down the stretch, hitting .330, with a .462 OBP and adding a formidable bat to the bottom of the batting order.
But I thought it was Ely Brown who was the catalyst that made the Dash engine hum. Assuming the leadoff spot, the recent 12th rounder from Mercer had a .399 OBP, with 85 walks that reflected excellent plate discipline and 66 knocked in that underscored strong bat-to-ball skills.
The pressing question is which of these guys demonstrated enough ability in Winston-Salem to advance to that all-important proving ground in Birmingham? The Double-A Southern League features the best pitching in the minor leagues and players that succeed there are effectively putting themselves on the radar for a shot at the big leagues.
I’d expect most of the core hitters in Winston-Salem to get bumped to Birmingham in 2027 — unless there just are not enough roster spots initially. And those roster spots, of course, depend largely on how many of the core group in Birmingham are bumped to Charlotte. Given that the White Sox intend to compete again in 2027, they’ll no doubt focus on loading up the Charlotte roster with guys with MLB experience, though I still imagine there’ll be room for several of the guys from Birmingham.
Brown and Lodise are sure bets to get the bump to Double-A. McLain likely is as well. Even though he only played 26 (very impressive) games in Winston-Salem, he will turn 24 before next opening day so the clock is ticking.
Wolkow is a fascinating case. Despite his 22 homers and 100 driven in, he also struck out 179 times in 557 plate appearances. And he is still just 20-years-old. The White Sox may wait to evaluate his off-season improvements in spring training before determining if he needs a bit more time in Winston-Salem.
I’d expect both Taussig and Perez to open in Birmingham for their second go at Double-A. Mogollon, meanwhile, is likely ticketed for more seasoning in High-A. I think the rest of the roster will be placed based on affiliate roster needs.
Number one overall selection Roch Cholowsky is likely to be back in Winston-Salem, for a brief time, anyway, given the so-so results in 9 games.
Despite the roster comings and goings, the Dash had strong team chemistry throughout the year, and no doubt that was an important component in the team’s success. Post-season ace Grant Umberger told me he had more fun on the 2026 Dash than some years in college. And several other players raved as well about the joy of the season, a testament to manager Guillermo Quiróz, along with bench coach Tyler Coolbaugh, hitting coach Adam Sinkoe and pitching coach Jacob Dorris.
It was quite a first year as a minor-league hitting coach for Sinkoe, whose team was never shut out in 132 regular-season games and 4 post-season contests.
His pitching coach counterpart, Dorris, may have done an even more impressive job, with a staff that was short on starting depth pretty much all year long. Only three hurlers had more than 8 starts for the Dash — Grant Umberger, Justin Sinibaldi and Drew McDaniel. All 3 were especially effective during the second half of the season when the Dash were making their playoff push and all three should earn the bump to Birmingham. A special shoutout to Umberger, who started 2 of 4 playoff games, with a combined line of: 14 innings, 1 earned run and 22 strikeouts.
Two relievers stood out as well down the stretch, Jake Curtis and Carlton Perkins, and they also likely punched their tickets to Birmingham. I’d expect another wave of relievers to open the year in Winston-Salem but get the bump to Birmingham sooner than later. This group includes Jack Young, Trey Cooper, Max Banks, Caedmon Parker and Landen Payne.
It’ll be interesting to see what the core of the team that won the 2026 South Atlantic League championship can do for an encore in Birmingham next year.
