Who's impressing at ChiSox camp? Who else?

PHOENIX -- Asking White Sox players to pick their most impressive teammate through the first half of Spring Training 2020 resulted in a number of “Everybody looks good” responses or multiple players being listed.

That sort of attitude is expected from a group with a tunnel vision-type focus on lofty team goals coming out of three rebuilding years. But when pushed for a response, it was center fielder Luis Robert who narrowly won this unofficial team endorsement. Chicago's slated Opening Day center fielder actually has been impressing people around baseball since the day he arrived with the organization.

Luis Robert Jr., CF
Robert, MLB Pipeline's No. 3 prospect in baseball and No. 1 for Chicago, will open the season as the White Sox center fielder after agreeing to a six-year, $50 million deal this past offseason before ever seeing a Major League regular-season pitch. No pressure there, right?

But as has been said and written many times before, Robert has the demeanor and the immense talent to embrace what many believe could be a career targeted for stardom. Over stops with Class A Advanced Winston-Salem, Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte in 2019, Robert posted a slash line of .328/.376/.624 with 32 home runs, 31 doubles, 36 stolen bases, 11 triples, 108 runs scored and 92 RBIs. Robert has a homer, double, triple and three stolen bases this spring.

• “I’ve never really seen him play. He’s a physical specimen for being this kind of young and raw as he is, he’s definitely kind of on the more polished side. Given his God-given ability, he’s a lot of fun to watch. The things he can do with a bat, the bat speed and the sound of his bat -- it’s something different. The fact he’s going to be able to go out there and make an instant impact, he seems like the guy who the sky is the limit." -- Left-handed reliever Aaron Bummer

• “I’ve never been around him enough to get to see him play. Then you understand he’s the fastest guy on the team, he can hit a ball as far as anybody on the team and throw as hard as anybody on the team. That’s very impressive. He’s a five-tool guy." -- Right-handed reliever Evan Marshall

Yermin Mercedes, C
Mercedes is a backstop built more like a NFL fullback, but he has proven he can flat-out hit since joining the White Sox. Mercedes, who is firmly in play for the team’s 26th roster spot, has two homers and six RBIs this spring after knocking out 23 homers with 80 RBIs for Birmingham and Charlotte last season.

• “He’s been hitting the ball real well, swinging the bat real well and looking good behind the plate. His personality is good. It’s kind of one of those, 'I want to beat you up but then I want to hug you.' We are always playing and messing around. He definitely fits into what we are trying to do.” -- Shortstop Tim Anderson

Reynaldo López, RHP
López put in extensive offseason work at Mamba Academy in Los Angeles to get both physically and mentally ready for the 2020 campaign. He had a solid season in '18 but struggled in '19 with a 5.38 ERA over 184 innings pitched. His focus has been squarely on the work here in Arizona while being penciled in as the team’s third starter.

• “With the work he put in this offseason, I think he really turned a page. The ball is coming out cleaner. He’s more focused on a daily basis on what he needs to do to improve. He got down to L.A. and was working out with the crew and he really committed to taking that next step, and I don’t want to make predictions or anything, but at the same time, I think that he’s in a much better place both physically and mentally.” -- Right-handed starter Lucas Giolito

Nicky Delmonico, OF
A healthy Delmonico has been a productive Delmonico, as the left-handed hitter has one homer, three doubles and three RBIs in nine games. Delmonico’s 2019 season came to an end in May when he had surgery to repair the labrum in his left shoulder, but he now is in play for the 26th man role despite not being on the 40-man roster.

• “He’s just been hitting balls hard, and he’s also been working counts. He has looked really good.” -- Right-handed starter Dylan Cease

Young starters
When asked to pick one player, veteran starter Dallas Keuchel couldn’t choose between the wealth of talented young hurlers. So here’s a vote for the present and the future:

“We are going to need a few of the young pitchers to step up if we are going to make a run at this thing. Just getting to know Giolito and Cease and [Michael Kopech] and Lopey. Those guys are really who I have been focusing on. I really like Bernardo Flores Jr..”