Chris Sale has become the fastest player to go from a draft to the major leagues since Ryan Wagner in 2003. The Chicago White Sox picked Sale 13th overall in the 2010 MLB Draft then signed him quickly, despite reservations from teams with higher selections that Sale might be a tough sign. He started in high A-Winston Salem and moved quickly through to triple-A Charlotte before getting the call to Chicago’s South Side before Wednesday’s game against the Tigers.

Sale did not get in to the game on Wednesday night, but realistically, nobody thought he would anyway. Sale is in town to learn, and he’ll start that process by watching. He did get some limited playing time in over the last two months. He pitched in 11 games in the minors and finished with an 0-0 record with a 2.61 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings. Not a lot of experience, but clearly that’s not what Chicago cares about right now.

Sale does not even have a profile picture up on MLB.com. The White Sox wanted him to move quickly through the system in a reliever’s role and get him to the parent club. The left-hander is following a road that Chicago’s Mark Buehrle, Jon Garland and Clayton Richard have all travelled before him. Why they thought a college player was major league ready is their choice, despite not having much evidence to support such a fast progression.

It’s tough to say how much action Sale will see between now and the end of the season. He threw a lot of innings with the Florida Gulf Coast University baseball team, so the Sox will be careful to keep his innings count down. Regardless, he’ll be applauded if he does well. It’s not often that fans get to see the new kids come to town so quickly, but with Sale, it’s like Christmas has come very, very early.