ACE alum Hickman joins coaching staff in Minors

CHICAGO -- Blake Hickman was part of the award-winning White Sox Amateur City Elite program as both a player and a coach. He also pitched two Minor League seasons within the White Sox system.

Now, the native Chicagoan becomes the first ACE player to get a job coaching with the White Sox. Hickman officially was announced as the new pitching coach for Single-A Kannapolis, where he took the mound for 17 starts and 88 2/3 innings in 2017.

Hickman, 29, never thought of reaching the diamond as anything but a player until recently.

“But you know, careers change,” Hickman said Tuesday via Zoom. “I’ve worked hard for this, and I'm just excited that I'm back wearing this White Sox uniform again. I’m loving it so far.”

“We feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to bring him aboard,” said Chris Getz, the White Sox assistant general manager of player development. “We look forward to helping him grow as an instructor.”

The 2023 White Sox player development staff was announced on Tuesday, marking Getz’s seventh season in charge of the organization’s Minor League operations and player development. Getz was promoted to his current role prior to the 2021 season, after serving as director of player development from 2017-20.

Justin Jirschele (Triple-A Charlotte), Lorenzo Bundy (Double-A Birmingham), Guillermo Quiroz (High-A Winston-Salem), Patrick Leyland (Kannapolis) and Danny González (Arizona Complex League Sox) will serve as the organization’s managers in 2023. Jirschele, Bundy, Quiroz and Leyland all were promoted one level from their managerial posts last season, while González makes his professional managerial debut after serving as a development coach in 2022.

Leyland is the son of Jim Leyland, who recorded 1,769 victories and a World Series title over 22 seasons as a Major League manager and also has coaching ties to the White Sox. Hickman -- who attended Simeon Career Academy as a high school student in Chicago -- joins Nicky Delmonico (Birmingham hitting coach), Danny Farquhar (Birmingham pitching coach) and Donnie Veal (assistant pitching coordinator) as former White Sox players returning as Minor League coaches. Veal and fellow assistant pitching coordinator Matt Zaleski will be based in Charlotte, allowing them to rove and help out Hickman where needed.

“There are going to be days where Zaleski or Donnie go and visit Blake and spend some time with the arms down there,” Getz said. “There are going to be days when they go to Winston-Salem and spend time there. Or, of course, there's going to be some needed attention at Charlotte with that group. So why not take advantage of having those three clubs in North Carolina?”

“Because this was where I started, it’s going to be awesome to share my experience with these guys,” Hickman said. “The game has changed since I played. The guys are learning much faster at this level, so it’s going to be awesome to learn from them and them learn from me through my experience of playing at the low-A level.”

Hickman’s work process already has begun in full force. He went to instructional league workouts to get to know some of the young pitching talent potentially starting at Kannapolis, such as Noah Schultz, the team’s first-round selection in the 2022 Draft and their No. 3 prospect per MLB Pipeline. Hickman has met with White Sox pitching coach Ethan Katz and Winston-Salem pitching coach John Ely in Chicago and attended a recent minicamp in Arizona.

Next up is Spring Training, before getting ready for Kannapolis’ Opening Day on April 6 and the home opener on April 18.

“Just getting the chance to get to know these guys early, get down to instructs and meeting guys like Noah Schultz and all the guys in the previous Drafts, it's just been exciting,” Hickman said “Getting to learn from some of the best baseball minds that I've played for and with, I can’t wait to start my career. It’s something I never thought I would be doing.

“I’m happy to be doing it, and it’s something I’m not going to take for granted. You get to wear a uniform again. That’s the biggest part. Be on the field and get these guys prepared to move up and hopefully get us a World Series.”