Yoelqui Céspedes fell short of his lofty personal goal during his first season with the White Sox organization. The 24-year old was determined to make the Major Leagues in 2021. While Céspedes was unable to accomplish this ambitious task, that hasn't stopped him from raising the bar for the 2022 season.
His new goal is to reach the Major Leagues and stay there permanently. For a team looking for a solution in right field, the door is open for Céspedes to make an impact on the big league roster.
"My approach right now is just to get to the Majors this year, but not just to get there and be demoted. I want to get there and stay there," Céspedes told the media through interpreter Billy Russo. "That's the plan. That is where my focus is right now. That is why I'm working hard, to accomplish that. That is the mindset right now."
In hopes of accomplishing this goal, he has also enrolled in the José Abreu tutelage program. Abreu approached Céspedes last year and told him to reach out if he needed anything. Cespedes did just that.
According to Vinnie Duber, he even compared Abreu to a father figure.
"When you're a kid and you have your dad and you're trying to follow him and all the stuff he does, it's the same here with José," Céspedes said.
Cespedes has now joined the growing list of players that Abreu has taken under his wing to mentor. A three-time All-Star with three Silver Slugger Awards, a Rookie of the Year, and MVP under his belt is a good player to seek guidance from. Abreu's advice was simple. Work hard and don't stop working. It seems like Céspedes has taken that advice to heart. According to the White Sox No. 2 overall prospect, it's baseball "all the time." "I started the season, not in the way I wanted to, but I worked some things out and I was able to get better as the season progressed," Cèspedes said. "It'll definitely put me in a better position for this year, and I learned how to be more consistent and how to get out of those struggles. Definitely, I'm in a better position this year." At 24 years old, Céspedes is considered an "older" prospect in the farm system. The average age of the White Sox top ten prospects is 21. The majority of whom arn't expected to reach the big leagues until 2023 or beyond. This created a greater emphasis on reaching the big leagues in a timely matter. It looked like he was pressing too hard at times. The 2021 season was a learning process. Céspedes admitted that the level of play in the states was higher than what he was used to in Cuba. He seemed impatient at the plate, striking out 83 times. Trying to learn English also added to the difficulty of his transition. Learning English has been an ongoing process but he seems to be making strides even answering a question in English during his Thursday media session over Zoom. However, despite the challenges, he still posted solid numbers. He started the season in High-A Winston Salem and was then promoted to Double-A Birmingham. Between his two stints, he slashed .285/.350/.463. He also tallied 30 extra-base hits including eight home runs. His speed was also on display with 18 stolen bases. The White Sox are still giddy about his potential. "He's got solid tools across," White Sox assistant general manager, Chris Getz told MLB.com."Based on the work he puts in and the conversations we have on a daily basis, he's going to be able to close those gaps and make the proper adjustments for future success." The talent is there for Céspedes to make his dream of reaching the big leagues in 2022 come true. If he can make some strides in his plate discipline once the season gets underway we could be seeing Céspedes patrolling the outfield of Guaranteed Rate Field in no time.
