White Sox invite 10 Dash alumni to Spring Training

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Jan. 21, 2014) - The Chicago White Sox have extended Spring Training invitations to 21 players who are not on the club's 40-man roster, and 10 of them are Dash alumni. This includes five members of the Dash's 2013 roster.

The full list of Dash alumni who will head to Glendale next month is as follows, with their year(s) in Winston-Salem in parentheses:

Pitchers (5): RHP Dylan Axelrod (2009-10), RHP Chris Bassitt (2012-13), RHP Chris Beck (2013), LHP Scott Snodgress (2012) and RHP Cody Winiarski (2013)
Catchers (2): Miguel Gonzalez (2012) and Kevan Smith (2012-13)
Infielders (2): Micah Johnson (2013) and Andy Wilkins (2011)
Outfielders (1): Keenyn Walker (2012)

Axelrod signed a minor league deal with the White Sox in the offseason after making 48 appearances for Chicago over the last three seasons. He went 10-4 in 28 appearances with the Dash from 2009-10.

Bassitt's first full season as a starting pitcher resulted in a midseason All-Star nod in the Carolina League. The Curtice, Ohio, native went 11-4 with a 3.08 earned run average between Winston and Double-A Birmingham.

Beck joined Bassitt in the Midsummer Classic before a late-season promotion to Birmingham. The 10th-best White Sox farmhand according to Baseball America, Beck was a combined 13-10 with a 3.07 ERA with the Dash and Barons.

Snodgress spent all of 2013 with Birmingham, posting an 11-11 mark with a 4.70 ERA. Following a midseason promotion to Winston-Salem in 2012, the southpaw was 4-0 with a 1.50 ERA in eight starts for the Dash.

Winiarski was with the Dash for much of last season, logging a 2.91 ERA and finishing fourth in the CL with 10 saves. He then jumped to Double-A, where he did not allow a run in 11 innings during the regular season.

Gonzalez was one of eight Dash alumni to debut in Major League Baseball a year ago. A September call-up for the White Sox, the Venezuela native played in Winston-Salem for much of the 2012 campaign.

Smith was one of the Carolina League's best catchers in 2013. He led all backstops on the circuit with 73 RBIs, and he was second in slugging (.464), second in runs scored (66) and third in home runs (12).

Johnson led Minor League Baseball with 84 stolen bases in 2013. He played with Low-A Kannapolis, Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham, hitting a combined .312 with 106 runs scored and 58 RBIs.

Wilkins has received his second straight non-roster invitation to Spring Training. He split last season between Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte, hitting .277 with 17 homers and 79 RBIs.

Walker, the White Sox first draft choice in 2011, played in Birmingham throughout the 2013 season. In 2012, the speedy outfielder hit .267 with 56 stolen bases between Kannapolis and Winston-Salem.

White Sox pitchers and catchers will report on February 15, while the full squad arrives in Glendale on February 20. The Sox kick off their Spring Training schedule on February 28 against the Dodgers.