Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Chicago White Sox have purchased the contract of Carlos Torres from AAA Charlotte. Torres will replace Aaron Poreda on the White Sox roster, who was optioned back to Charlotte. Charlotte now has one too many on the roster so expect a roster move to follow, potentially Jeff Marquez being placed back on the DL.

Torres will be in Chicago in time for tonight’s game and our sources indicate his promotion will be short-lived. Torres will provide the Sox with relief in case Clayton Richard has another poor outing and will remain on the roster until Friday, when Torres is optioned back to AAA Charlotte to make room for Bartolo Colon, who is scheduled to start part of the double-header.

Torres was a 15th round selection (2004) out of Kansas State and went 8-4 with a 2.20 ERA in 16 games (15 starts) for the Knights this season. He is primarily a fastball pitcher (90-93) with a very live arm. His best pitch is his cutter and he’ll compliment his fastball with a change-up and curve. Fastball command and his ability to keep hitters off-balance by changing locations and using his off-speed stuff effectively is the key to Torres’ success.

Poreda, who is the Sox top pitching prospect, was used sporadically since being promoted to Chicago on June 9th. Poreda pitched well (2.45 ERA, 9 hits, 12 K, 8 BB in 11 IP) in all but his final appearance, where he faced two batters with the bases loaded and proceeded to walk both of them.

While a demotion is typically not considered a good thing, Poreda should benefit from additional time in the minors. In fact, I’d call the demotion a great thing for Poreda’s career as his limited usage over the past month did nothing to help his development.

He’ll be able to rejoin the rotation in Charlotte and continue to develop his secondary stuff while working on improving his command. A stretched out Poreda might also be a Plan B, C, or D this season if Torres/Richard/Colon struggle in the rotation.