Kyle Teel arrived at Rate Field around 11 a.m. Friday, several hours ahead of his big-league debut.
“When you walk in the locker room and you see your nameplate on your locker, it’s like, ‘Wow. I did it. I’m here and I’m ready to go,’” Teel said Friday afternoon.
The Chicago White Sox officially promoted the catcher to the majors ahead of the series opener against the Kansas City Royals. Reports of the move first surfaced Thursday evening.
“This is a dream come true,” Teel said. “I’m trying to soak it all in. It’s something I worked my whole life for. It’s really special.”
Teel went 1-for-2 with two walks and a run in a 7-2 victory in front of 36,916 on Mexican Heritage Night — the first home sellout of the season for the Sox.
“This was a great experience,” Teel said after the game. “I dreamed about this moment for a long time, since I can remember. Just the emotion I felt out on the field was really amazing. I’m just so happy.”
Teel walked in his first plate appearance in the second inning. His first major-league hit came in the fourth inning, a single to left field against Royals starter Seth Lugo. He walked again during the five-run eighth inning, later scoring on a wild pitch.
“Nice job by Kyle,” manager Will Venable said. “Right in the mix in everything. Obviously a great job behind the plate, navigating things for our pitchers — did a great job. And then at-bats, just looked in control the whole time. Some big spots, didn’t chase. Just a really good day for Kyle.”
It was also a good day for Luis Robert Jr., who had two hits and drove in three in his return to the lineup. Robert didn’t play Tuesday and Wednesday as he worked on adjustments at the plate. He was out Thursday because a ball ricocheted and hit him in the head during Wednesday’s workouts. His two-run single in the eighth gave the Sox a 4-2 lead.
Teel made it 5-2 when he scored on the wild pitch.
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel dives for the plate to score on a wild pitch in the eighth inning against the Royals on June 6, 2025, at Rate Field. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel celebrates at the plate to score on a wild pitch in the eighth inning against the Royals on June 6, 2025, at Rate Field. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
“I was looking for it in the dirt and I saw it kick, so I just went home,” Teel said.
Teel said he settled into the game in the fourth inning when he threw out Drew Waters trying to steal second base.
“I don’t really think the nerves affected me at all,” Teel said. “But I do feel like I got more relaxed when that play happened.”
Sox starter Davis Martin, who allowed two runs on five hits with seven strikeouts and no walks in six innings, said Teel “had the feel of the game.”
“He’s learning very quickly,” Martin said. “It was a great job by him.”
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel swings through on his first major-league hit with a single in the fourth inning against the Royals at Rate Field on June 6, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel casts a smile after hitting his first major-league hit with a single in the fourth inning against the Royals at Rate Field on June 6, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Teel, 23, is ranked the No. 2 prospect in the Sox organization by MLB.com, which also lists him as the No. 26 prospect in baseball.
He has a .295/.394/.492 slash line with eight home runs, 10 doubles, 30 RBIs, 34 runs and 30 walks in 50 games with Triple-A Charlotte. Teel reached base safely in 38 of his last 39 games for the Knights since April 10.
“I would just say that working hard and being consistent with my process every single day is what I did and I don’t expect that to stop,” Teel said before the game. “Just keep the head down and keep working hard. I think that’s a big part of my game, just being a hard-nosed ballplayer. That’s what I’m going to do.”
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel, center, celebrates after catching a popup from Royals catcher Salvador Perez in the eighth inning at Rate Field on June 6, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
General manager Chris Getz said of Teel’s promotion: “A lot of it was just Kyle’s production, quite honestly.”
“You’re always trying to fine-tune every aspect of your game and you look at what he was doing behind the plate from a receiving standpoint, the feedback from our coaches and players that the game-calling, the game management was in a really good spot,” Getz said. “And then you look at his offensive output, which has been really strong now for a stretch. He just continues to put together quality at-bats with power, getting on base, making good decisions.
“So you’re looking at a fairly well-rounded player. Obviously as he transitions to the major-league level, there’s always going to be adjustments. We feel he’s in a good spot.”
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel heads to the bullpen to warm up before a game against the Royals on June 6, 2025, at Rate Field. Teel made his major-league debut in the game. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
White Sox catcher Kyle Teel, making his major-league debut, takes a foul ball to the gut from Royals second baseman Jonathan India in the first inning on June 6, 2025, at Rate Field. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Teel joins Edgar Quero as options for the Sox behind the plate after the club optioned catcher Korey Lee to Charlotte.
“You’re talking about a tandem that’s a young tandem that’s probably one of the strongest in baseball,” Getz said. “It’s not easy to send down a player like Korey Lee, because he’s talented as well. You look at the catch and throw and the athleticism that he has.”
Photos: Chicago White Sox vs. Kansas City Royals on Mexican Heritage Night at Rate Field
Lee has a .250 average with three doubles, one RBI and seven runs in 14 games. He was on the injured list from April 10-May 27 with a sprained left ankle.
“He has made a strong impression and those conversations are never easy,” Getz said of Lee. “He was disappointed, as you would expect. I have the utmost confidence that he’s going to go down there and perform well and work on all facets of his catching game and certainly offensively.
“The catching position is what we feel like is a strength of the organization considering that we have two catchers at the major league-level and a catcher like Korey at Triple A.”
Venable said Teel and Quero will split time.
“I think you may see them match up a little bit,” Venable said before the game. “But we’re comfortable with (left-handed hitting) Kyle facing lefties and obviously (Quero) being a switch-hitter we’re comfortable with him on both sides of the plate.
“And excited about them catching all of our pitchers. So just understanding the demands of that position are extremely high, so I think just making sure that they can both split the load is the way we’ll go into this.”
Teel was one of the four players the Sox acquired — along with infielder Chase Meidroth, outfielder Braden Montgomery and pitcher Wikelman Gonzalez — in the December trade that sent pitcher Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox. Meidroth and Teel were both in Friday’s lineup, with Teel at catcher and batting sixth.
“This is something I dreamed about since I was a little kid,” Teel said. “Everything I worked for comes up to this point. So, this is awesome.”
Originally Published: June 6, 2025 at 10:43 PM CDT