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The White Sox survived their schedule's gauntlet, going 6-5 against the Phillies, Braves, Dodgers and Yankees, only to suffer a sweep at the hands of the Tigers in Detroit. Now they return to Rate Field, where they'd be well-served to continue their outstanding play at home considering they're hosting the Guardians for the first three games of their season series.

A little bit of everything went wrong at Comerica Park — they didn't score enough runs, they didn't have enough starting pitchers, and when they were able to scratch out a two-run lead, their best relievers fumbled it away.

The good news? Kyle Teel is back, and represents the idea of one of their most valuable players arriving to solve one of their greatest areas of need. Whether it works out that cleanly remains to be seen, but for the time being, appreciate the minor miracle of the White Sox winning more games than they lost without him, even though their catchers put forth the league's worst performance at the position.

— Jim

By JIM MARGALUS

After a pair of sprains teamed up to put him on the shelf for the first 76 games of the season, Kyle Teel is back, and just when the White Sox could use him the most.

The White Sox activated Teel from the injured list this morning, and optioned Edgar Quero to Charlotte to make room. While the White Sox might ease Teel into action due to the time he missed from the Grade 2 hamstring strain he suffered during the World Baseball Classic, and then the sprained right knee LCL he incurred during his rehab stint, he'll ultimately be tasked with rescuing a catching situation that statistically grades out as the worst in Major League Baseball.

The position has been a mess without him. Offensively, White Sox catchers hit .171/.249/.268 during Teel's absence. That's good for a 45 wRC+, and only Philadelphia's 43 wRC+ saves them from the cellar on that side of the ball. But the JT Realmuto-led Phillies group offers the second-best catching defense according to both FanGraphs and Statcast, whereas the White Sox's -5 Fielding Run Value is the fifth-worst in baseball thanks to subpar receiving and blocking, so there's little going for them either at the plate or behind it.

Worse yet, there have been no recent signs of traction. After a mildly encouraging May, Quero is hitting an empty 6-for-38 in June, with no walks or extra-base hits. As bad as that sounds, and although he was the catcher who was shuttled to Triple-A, he was the superior option during a time when Romo hit 2-for-28. Combined, White Sox catchers are hitting .121/.132/.136 with a -35 wRC+ in June. The White Sox are dead last in fWAR at -0.8, and the last month is responsible for virtually all of that deficit.

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