White Sox option Erik Johnson to Triple-A Charlotte; Carson Fulmer opening eyes

Erik Johnson

The White Sox will have one right-handed pitcher in their Opening Day starting rotation. It just won't be Erik Johnson.

The Sox optioned Johnson to Triple-A Charlotte on Monday as one of three roster moves. Pitcher Tyler Danish and infielder Steve Lombardozzi also were assigned to minor league camp.

Johnson's demotion is a sign the club sees Mat Latos as its fifth starter going into the season, although Latos is yet to pitch in a game this spring. As for Johnson, he did nothing to distinguish himself in two starts, allowing nine runs on 10 hits in six innings.

The other rotation candidate, Jacob Turner, has made three Cactus League starts, but he has looked shaky -- allowing nine earned runs on 13 hits over 7.2 innings. He allowed two runs and lasted just two innings in a struggling performance against the Oakland A's on Sunday.

Latos seems to be the leader by default for that rotation spot.

Meanwhile, Carson Fulmer continued to impress Sunday with 3.1 scoreless innings and four strikeouts against the A's. It caught my attention on the Sox broadcast Saturday when pitching coach Don Cooper said Fulmer is further along in his development now than Carlos Rodon was at this same time last year.

Cooper reiterated the point when Scott Merkin of MLB.com asked him if Fulmer could contribute to the 2016 Sox.

"Absolutely. Why not?" Cooper said. "I believe at this point, right now, compared to last year, he's slightly ahead of where [Carlos] Rodon was."

Manager Robin Ventura also praised Fulmer in a story filed by CSNChicago.com's Dan Hayes.

“He’s jumped up there pretty high,” Ventura said. “Coop’s excited about what he’s been doing down here, making some adjustments and really putting himself on the radar for a couple of needs that might arise. He could probably fill both of those. Just an impressive young guy and is very mature and is learning very quickly as he goes along.”

This is a change from what we heard at SoxFest, when Ventura and general manager Rick Hahn tried to tamp down high fan expectations for Fulmer.

The 2015 first-round draft pick is not going to come north with the Sox, but his recent performances and the latest comments from team brass suggest his stay in the minors might not be a long one.

White Sox bats showing some life in early spring

Avisail Garcia

The White Sox have scored 40 runs through their first six Cactus League games, including 34 runs in their last four games.

I know, it's spring training, so who cares? But the Sox are normally so terrible in spring ball that you can't help but notice when they do well.

Avisail Garcia and Jimmy Rollins both homered in Tuesday's 10-6 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, as the Sox improved to 4-1-1 so far in Arizona.

The Sox have 12 home runs by 12 different players through six games. Garcia and Rollins joined a list yesterday that includes Jose Abreu, Todd Frazier, Adam Eaton, Dioner Navarro, Matt Davidson, Steve Lombardozzi, Adam LaRoche, Brett Lawrie, Tyler Saladino and Jason Coats.

The South Siders are leading the Cactus League with a .609 slugging percentage heading into Thursday's game against the Oakland A's. All the usual caveats apply about these games being meaningless, but it's been a long time since the Sox have looked good in spring training.

Do you want to know the last time the Sox had a winning mark in spring games? 2004! Even the 2005 World Series championship team had a losing month of March.

So, while this recent stretch of good offense won't mean a thing when April 4 rolls around, it's refreshing to see some guys getting good results, instead of having to resort to the usual grumping about how early it is, or clinging to the idea that failure is OK because the players are "just getting their work in."

It's never a bad thing to play good baseball.

Wondering what the Tigers will do at shortstop

Free agent SS Stephen Drew

Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias will begin the season on the disabled list and could miss significant time with stress fractures in both of his shins.

Infield defense has been a weakness for the Tigers the past couple years, but they appeared to have upgraded this offseason by moving Miguel Cabrera from third base to first base, trading first baseman Prince Fielder to Texas for second baseman Ian Kinsler, moving on from Jhonny Peralta and installing Iglesias full time at short, and deciding to give prospect Nick Castellanos a shot at third base.

The key to this whole plan was Iglesias, who is a plus-plus defender at the most important position on the infield, and who would likely help cover up for some of the inconsistencies Castellanos has defensively. But Iglesias is not available to the Tigers now, so what is their Plan B?

The internal options aren't favorable. They acquired utilityman Steve Lombardozzi from the Washington Nationals in the Doug Fister deal this offseason, but I don't think shortstop is Lombardozzi's best position. He could play there in a pinch, but his main value is his ability to play multiple positions, and I wouldn't want him as a full-time shortstop.

Another option is Danny Worth, who has split time between the Tigers and Triple-A every year since 2010. Worth is an organizational depth kind of player, another guy you probably wouldn't want playing every day. He hit just .223 at the Triple-A level last year, and has never played more than 80 games at shortstop in a single season. He's also a nonroster invitee this year, which means he'd have to get added to the 40-man roster if he makes the club. It's unlikely he'll be Detroit's answer.

The Tigers also have youngsters Hernan Perez and Eugenio Suarez, who have been getting playing time in spring games in Iglesias' absence. Suarez has a good defensive reputation, but he's never played a game above Double-A, where he hit .253 last season. If I had to take a guess, he's not ready to make the jump to the big leagues.

That leaves Perez, who has played more second base since getting in 124 games at shortstop in Single-A as a 19-year-old in 2010. He was on Detroit's postseason roster last year and was used as a pinch runner. He has the potential to steal some bases, but he can't hit a lick. His .197/.217/.227 line in 71 major league at-bats last year probably doesn't inspire much confidence.

I wouldn't want any of these four guys as my starting shortstop. I think Detroit has to do something, especially with pitcher Max Scherzer, designated hitter Victor Martinez and right fielder Torii Hunter all in the last year of their contracts. There has to be urgency to win now, and Tigers brass can't afford to let this season swirl down the toilet because of a sinkhole at shortstop.

You have to believe Detroit is going to make a play for shortstop Stephen Drew, who is still a free agent. Drew is not as good as Iglesias with the leather, but he's at least above average. He's not dynamic with the bat by any means -- he hit .253 with 13 home runs for the Boston Red Sox last year -- but that would be much better production than anything the Tigers could hope to get out of guys like Lombardozzi, Worth or Perez.

I don't know what shortstops might be available in a trade. Longtime Philadelphia shortstop Jimmy Rollins has already said he won't waive his no-trade rights to go to Detroit. Maybe the Tigers have a trade option I'm not aware of. But, if no deal can be struck, don't they have to sign Drew? It just seems like an obvious fit.