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 (5-13), 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.
Glendale Desert Dogs 10, Surprise Saguaros 3 (10/20/26)
Chicago’s prospects got the day off as the Dogs notched just their third fall win.
Peoria Javelinas 3, Glendale Desert Dogs 0 (10/21/26 — 6 innings)
The rain put an early end to this one, but the Dogs’ bats never really got started in a 3-0 loss to Peoria. Both teams managed four hits before the game was called after the sixth, but Glendale’s were all singles, with three coming in the second inning and nothing to show for them. Shelton had one of those knocks, finishing 1-for-2 with a strikeout. After a red-hot start to the fall, Bonemer cooled off just a bit, going 0-for-3 with two Ks, while Magill went 0-for-2 with a punchout.
Glendale Desert Dogs 10, Mesa Solar Sox 0 (10/22/26)
For once, the Desert Dogs were doing the trampling, piling up 10 runs on 14 hits in a shutout of Mesa. Apparently, Bonemer heard me talking about his bat cooling off and took it personally, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs and finishing a double shy of the cycle. His triple to center came off the bat at 106.9 mph.
Magill added a 1-for-4 night, while Shelton went 0-for-3 with a walk and a sacrifice fly. Chicago’s pitching prospects kept up their fall dominance, with Altermatt, Clark and LaCombe each tossing a hitless, scoreless frame. Altermatt and Clark supplied the punchout party, fanning two and three, respectively.
Glendale Desert Dogs 5, Scottsdale Scorpions 4 (10/24/26 — 8 innings)
Bonemer’s AFL farewell was quiet at the plate, but his final numbers should make Sox fans feel pretty good about their No. 2 overall prospect. The 21-year-old went 0-for-2 with two free passes and a K in the Dog’s 5-4 win. He wrapped up 13 games with a .286/.364/.633 slash line, a .996 OPS and three homers over 55 plate appearances, and finished tied for the league lead in extra-base hits (nine) and second in total bases (31). The assignment’s main mission was outfield work, and he got it: eight games in center, three in left, and one in right. There were a couple of adventures along the way, including his lone error in the opener and a fly lost in the sun later on, but the reps were the point. Bonemer was the only Chicago hitter to see action in the win.
On the mound, Wright put his spotless ERA through a stress test. A leadoff single in the seventh was erased by a catcher pickoff, but a walk, single and another walk loaded the bases. Wright punched out the next batter before handing the mess to Cristhian Tortosa, who struck out the final hitter to keep Wright’s 0.00 AFL ERA intact. Vail also joined the fall fun, working a hitless, scoreless inning with one walk and three Ks in his debut.
Mesa Solar Sox 13, Glendale Desert Dogs 12 (10/26/26)
Shelton kept his strong fall rolling, but the Dogs came up just short in a 13-12 slugfest. The 23-year-old went 3-for-4 with a walk, four RBIs and two runs scored, including his second AFL blast. His three-run round-tripper gave Glendale a 4-3 lead in the first, and his RBI single in the seventh pulled the Dogs within one. That was as close as they would get, though, as Mesa held on for the win.
Hitters
Caleb Bonemer: .286/.364/.633, .996 OPS, 4 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 6 BB, 12 RBI, 12 K, 49 ABs
Grant Magill: .227/.250/.273, .523 OPS, 1 2B, 1 BB, 4 RBI, 9 K, 22 ABs
Colby Shelton: .263/.362/.421, .783 OPS, 2 HR, 6 BB, 9 RBI, 7 K, 38 ABs
Pitchers
Nick Altermatt: 1.93 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 4 2/3 IP, 3 BB, 7 K
Jonathan Clark: 1.50 ERA, 0.33 WHIP, 6 IP, 1 BB, 8 K
Matthias LaCombe: 6.00 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, 6 IP, 5 BB, 3 K
Tommy Vail: 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 1 IP, 1 BB, 3 K
Garrett Wright: 0.00 ERA, 2.21 WHIP, 6 1/3 IP, 5 BB, 10 K
