The Arizona Fall League is underway, and Chicago has eight prospects in the Grand Canyon State, headlined by Caleb Bonemer, 3B/SS/OF (No. 2/MLB No. 27). Rounding out the crew are Mathias LaCombe, RHP (No. 17); Colby Shelton, INF (No. 23); Nick Altermatt, RHP; Jonathan Clark, RHP; Grant Magill, C; Tommy Vail, LHP and Garrett Wright, RHP.
The team added Vail after Pierce George, RHP (No. 18), suffered an olecranon fracture in his pitching elbow. While it sounds like an awful injury, he is expected to
participate in 2027 Spring Training. Anthony DePino, INF (No. 21), was also originally on the Dogs roster, but instead underwent shoulder surgery. He should also be ready for spring.
The White Sox prospects are suiting up for the Glendale Desert Dogs, sharing the dugout with hopefuls from the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, Miami Marlins, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
Chicago ties Los Angeles for sending the most Top 30 prospects (five) to the AFL.
Salt River Rafters 6, Glendale Desert Dogs 5 (10/13/26 — 10 innings)
The Dogs brought some early pop, but the Rafters had the last bark. Bonemer smacked his first AFL homer in the bottom of the first, sending a two-out, two-run shot 388 feet to left-center to give Glendale an early lead. It was his only hit of the contest, but he made it count.
Shelton joined the first-homer club in the fifth, leading off the frame with a solo shot to knot the game at 3-3. Magill also saw action behind the plate but went 0-for-4. The teams were tied at 5-5 after nine, but Salt River pushed its ghost runner across in the 10th to hand the Dogs the loss.
Surprise Saguaros 17, Glendale Desert Dogs 9 (10/15/26)
Fortunately, no South Siders saw action in this beatdown.
Glendale Desert Dogs 3, Scottsdale Scorpions 1 (10/16/26)
The Dogs finally picked up their second win, and Bonemer made sure they started with a bang. His first-inning solo shot traveled 431 feet to left at 111.9 mph off the bat, giving Glendale a 1-0 lead it never surrendered.
Bonemer finished 1-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout while patrolling center field. Shelton had a quieter day at the plate, going 0-for-3 with a free pass and a K.
Surprise Saguaros 10, Glendale Desert Dogs 0 (10/17/26 — 7 innings)
The Dogs managed just two hits as Surprise rolled to a shutout win. Bonemer supplied one of those knocks, a two-out double in the bottom of the first, and finished 1-for-3. Magill handled catching duties but went 0-for-2 with a pair of punchouts.
On the mound, LaCombe tossed a scoreless fifth before things got messy for his fellow Sox prospects. Wright inherited a bases-loaded jam in the sixth, allowing just one runner to score on a sac fly before ending the threat with a strikeout. The seventh was a different story, as a pair of errors by the shortstop helped saddle the righty with three unearned runs. Altermatt entered with runners on the corners, and the inning kept unraveling with a wild pitch, a single and a walk. Another unearned run crossed before he finally ended the frame, and the game, with a ground out.
Salt River Rafters 7, Desert Dogs 1 (10/19/26)
The Dogs’ bats were quiet again, mustering only four hits in another offensive struggle. Shelton supplied half of them, including a two-out RBI base hit in the fourth that plated Glendale’s only run. The 23-year-old finished 2-for-3 with a pair of singles and a walk, while Bonemer went 0-for-4 with a K.
Clark made quick work of the Rafters in the bottom of the eighth, needing just eight pitches to complete a scoreless, hitless frame.
Hitters
Caleb Bonemer: .282/.349/.590, .939 OPS, 4 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 9 RBI, 8 K, 39 ABs
Grant Magill: .250/.278/.313, .590 OPS, 2B, 1 BB, 4 RBI, 6 K, 16 ABs
Colby Shelton: .207/.314/.310, .624 OPS, HR, 4 BB, 4 RBI, 6 K, 29 ABs
Pitchers
Nick Altermatt: 2.45 ERA, 1.64 WHIP, 3 2/3 IP, 3 BB, 5 Ks
Jonathan Clark: 1.80 ERA, 0.40 WHIP, 5 IP, 1 BB, 5 K
Matthias LaCombe: 7,20 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, 5 IP, 5 BB, 3 K
Tommy Vail: did not pitch
Garrett Wright: 0.00 ERA, 1.76 WHIP, 5 2/3 IP, 3 BB, 9 K
