The 2022 season hasn’t gone at all as the White Sox hoped, but they nevertheless find themselves within striking distance of the AL Central lead, thanks largely to the underwhelming composition of the division as a whole. This comes despite designating fifth starter Dallas Keuchel for assignment after eight starts, despite receiving no production at all from their catchers and despite another injury-ravaged season from Eloy Jimenez (among many other issues).
Some of the White Sox’ struggles weren’t exactly impossible to forecast. Keuchel’s 2021 season was substandard, to say the least, for instance. The Sox were thin on depth behind their Opening Day rotation options, and to the front office’s credit, they struck the absolute jackpot in signing Johnny Cueto to a minor league deal. (Where would they be without his 74 innings of 2.80 ERA ball?)
Not every patchwork option has played out quite so nicely, however. Relying on Leury Garcia and Josh Harrison to hold down second base seemed questionable, at best, and the results are worse than most could’ve imagined. There was no reason to expect Garcia to suddenly become one of the absolute worst hitters in the Majors, but he’s at .205/.232/.262, and the resulting 39 wRC+ (61% worse than league-average) is third-worst in MLB (min. 200 plate appearances). Harrison is better utilized as a utility player, but Garcia’s struggles have increased his role. In Harrison’s defense, his .260/.339/.420 slash against lefties is quite good, and with a better platoon partner he’d be a solid part-time piece. His .223/.293/.350 slash against fellow righties, however, is obviously problematic.
Still, the greatest area of need on this team isn’t second base at the moment, but rather in the corner outfield, where the team’s solution to an offseason need appeared quite sound at the time. When the Sox flipped embattled reliever Craig Kimbrel to the Dodgers in exchange for outfielder AJ Pollock, it looked as though they’d killed two birds with one stone. Jettisoning Kimbrel following last year’s struggles was a clear priority for the South Siders, and they did so by acquiring a veteran who’d posted a .272/.330/.499 batting line over the past half decade — including an even better .290/.342/.547 slash in his final two seasons with the Dodgers. The trade even saved the White Sox a million dollars; it was hard to find fault with the deal.
Unfortunately, we’ve reached the “even the best laid plans” cliche territory with how that swap has worked out. Pollock missed 10 days with a hamstring strain early in the season and, when healthy, has floundered through the worst season of his 11-year Major League career. In 272 plate appearances, he’s batting just .227/.268/.333 with career-lows in walk rate (5.1%) and hard-hit rate (37.7%). Pollock has already tied a career-worst with 14 infield flies. A whopping 18.2% of the fly-balls he’s hit this season have been classified as infield flies, effectively rendering them automatic outs.
Beyond the glut of pop-ups and dearth of walks, Pollock’s sprint speed has dropped in 2022 — perhaps not an unexpected result for a 34-year-old outfielder who has now thrice been on the injured list with hamstring strains dating back to Opening Day 2021. Statcast measures Pollocks’ average sprint speed at 27.5 feet per second — down from the 28.1 ft/sec he posted in the four seasons prior. It’s not a massive dip, but for a player who derives value from his wheels. Pollock is hitting just .193 on grounders this year — his worst mark since 2017. From 2018-21, he batted no worse than .243 on grounders in a single season and hit .276 on grounders overall. That may not be solely attributable to the dip in his sprint speed, but losing that extra step can’t help his cause.
For all of Pollock’s struggles, however, there’s another reason the Sox need to find an alternative in the outfield: his contract. Considering this year’s performance, it should be a given that Pollock will exercise the $10MM player option on his contract. That’s already onerous enough, but Pollock can boost the value of that option even further, tacking on an additional million dollars for reaching each of 400, 450, 500, 550 and 600 plate appearances this season. He’s at 272 plate appearances right now, so he’s surely not going to reach the top thresholds of that bonus structure, but he could certainly reach 400 or perhaps even 450 plate appearances and tack on another $1-2MM to that option’s value.
There’s no escaping that option for the White Sox, either, barring an unlikely salary dump. Because it’s a player option, the base value is considered guaranteed money. Just as the Padres can’t simply release Eric Hosmer and be free of the $39MM he’s owed after the opt-out clause he has at the end of the current season, the ChiSox can’t cut Pollock and avoid the $10MM he’s promised for next season. If another team were to claim him on waivers, that team would assume responsibility of that player option, but Pollock’s struggles would lead to him going unclaimed.
Beyond that, there’s good reason for the Sox to actually hang onto Pollock — this season’s struggles notwithstanding. While his overall productivity has been poor, Pollock has hit .274/.297/.532 against lefties. Even though just 64 of his 272 plate appearances have come versus southpaws, all four of his homers and four of his 13 doubles have come when holding the platoon advantage. Pollock has crushed lefties throughout his career (.285/.335/.522), so it’s not a surprise to see that trend continue, even as his fate against right-handed opponents has taken a tumble.
The Sox might have been hopeful that Gavin Sheets could serve as a left-handed-hitting corner outfield complement if needed, but he’s hitting just .229/.296/.388 against righties this season. And, as a 6’5″, 230-pound first baseman whose first professional appearance in the outfield was only last season, Sheets has predictably turned in poor defensive marks in 276 innings (-5 Defensive Runs Saved, -4.8 Ultimate Zone Rating, -3 Outs Above Average).
The trade market for outfielders isn’t as robust as it has been in seasons past, but there are still some solid lefty-swinging options who could pair well with Pollock to help boost the ChiSox’ fortunes against righties. Andrew Benintendi is the most talked-about member of the bunch, but Cincinnati’s Tyler Naquin is another above-average hitter against righties whose $4MM salary is more affordable than Benintendi’s $8.5MM mark. Arizona’s David Peralta, Baltimore’s Anthony Santander and Washington’s Yadiel Hernandez are all options as well, though the Orioles’ recent winning streak might dissuade them from moving controllable pieces like Santander and Hernandez may not be deemed a big enough upgrade over Sheets.
Whatever names the Sox decide to target, salary figures to be a part of the equation. Chicago’s payroll is already at a franchise-record $194MM, and they already have a hefty $117MM of guaranteed salary on the books in 2023. That doesn’t include Pollock’s player option or the no-brainer decision to pick up Tim Anderson’s $12.5MM club option — nor does it include arbitration raises for key players like Dylan Cease, Lucas Giolito and Michael Kopech (among others) or a potential deal to bring back stalwart first baseman Jose Abreu, who’ll be a free agent at season’s end.
Given those forthcoming financial obligations and a farm system that’s regarded as one of the worst in the league (if not the worst), the White Sox aren’t likely to factor prominently into the Juan Soto bidding. However, a short-term, lefty-hitting corner outfielder to pair with righties Pollock, Jimenez, Luis Robert, Andrew Vaughn and Adam Engel would still be useful for a White Sox team that carries an underwhelming .250/.303/.368 batting line against right-handed pitching this season.
May I interest you in cost controlled right fielder Taylor Ward? He has decent range and decent pop, putting him in the Southside in a more hitter friendly park would likely help as well.
Angels need an MLB ready or near MLB ready infielder, catcher, and as always pitching.
We might also interest you in one Thor to round out the rotation. Thor plus say $5 million to offset his contract for maybe a relief arm that is MLB ready or nearly so.
Heavy emphasis on the MLB ready as our development staff isn’t all that great.
Sure sure good deal all around
Zip! I could see them getting whit tho
If the underachievers tread water or fall back this next 1.5 weeks, hope they have the courage to strategically sell off some movable parts to retool a bit. This squad is not worth a big splash that involves dealing Montgomery. Nothing they do puts them with Hou/NY, so it will take magic. Current veteran roster has to step up.
They aren’t underachieving. That roster isn’t as good as people thought it was
No, this is an underachieving team. Most players are nowhere near where they have shown in previous years. Some may be due to age, injuries, playing out of position, coaching, or even the clubhouse culture, but either way this team is worse than most pundits expected.
There is definitley some underachieving here here. They haven’t been lucky with injuries. Lynn and Giolito have been injured or have underperformed. Yasmani Grandal has spent a good portion of the season on the IL. Yoan Moncada is having his worst offensive season yet. Eloy Jimenez has also missed most of the season. It kind of sucks too because stalwarts like Anderson and Abreu are still producing well and Vaughn has done pretty good for himself. Reynaldo Lopez looks to have found his groove as well. Dylan Cease might honestly fly under the radar as a CYA candidate and Johnny Cueto is putting up his best single-season ERA since 2016.
Amk: Both can be true. Not a fan of the roster construction, but they should be leading ALC if the players took pride in improving their games.
I appreciate this point stated in the article…. They thought Leury Garcia and Josh Harrison was a good plan at 2B…. They thought Gavin Sheets (a rookie first baseman they stick in RF) was a LH power option against righties
One thing that has been overlooked though, is that except for Cueto, their starting pitchers have been showing signs of wear over the last few weeks. None, including Cease (who has overall had a great first half), have been performing up to expectations lately. Certainly not up to the overhyped expectations of their TV broadcast ‘boys’.
And please, their defense is horrible.
Cease has a 0.88 ERA, 12.3 K/9, 0.946 WHIP and an OPS against of .516 over the last 28 days, but I guess that’s not performing up to expectations…
But his ERA could be 0 if he was truely achieving.
This team needs a new coaching staff tomorrow. The hitting has been abysmal all season. The pitching, outside of a few players, has been meh at best. They make stupid mistakes on the field defensively and offensively. There seems to be little passion to want to win, just act tough until they have to actually play someone. This needs to change from the top down. Come on Jerry! Time has clearly passed TLR. This team has the players to succeed, but not the right leadership in the coaches and players rooms.
Do the Sox ever develop players, Cespedes sucks, there has to be someone in the minors, Colas
The Sox are so good at finding useless bench players to start everyday in RF. How many times you gonna waste money on a donkey, only to cut them midway thru because they stink? This organization is embarrassing. If the Cubs weren’t the worst team in professional sports…
How’s your minor league system again??? And your development staff? And the strength of your division??
He can’t help but be obsessed with the Cubs when they had already won it all by this point in their window.
Develop a starting pitcher who can get 180+ strikeouts without their arm falling off and get back to me.
Hi My Friend. So long no see. How are your Whitey Sucks? Also, how are your minors, and how are you developing pitching? And also how is your window which never was open. Nobody expected anything from the Cubs, but this was to be your year an next WS title, according to all the bull#&$ you are always talkin’ lol.
Nobody listening
Why worry about the Cubs? They literally have no bearing on the current White Sox season. They’ve already played their 4 games. It seems the White Sox have enough to be concerned about without dragging the Cubs into it. So what that the Cubs are having a down year? The White Sox aren’t too far removed from the same. Let alone this season when they’re supposed to be competitive, yet are highly underachieving so far.
Ah yes, deflect toward the Cubs to help distract yourself from the fact that the White Sox suck and won’t amount to anything anytime soon.
Let history be our guide – Hahn will acquire Juan Soto’s cousin.
Told you Sox fans before the season started that their “rebuild” was poor and that the actions the FO took coming out of it were possibly the worst I recall any team doing. Wrote that within 2 years everyone would wonder what all the hoopla was about.
People are beginning to realize that.
A MLB team is not built on a group of unathletic DH’s sprinkled in with a few hot dogs and one or two real baseball players. Is there a team in MLB with a worst overall baseball IQ? There isn’t a manager alive or in history that can make this team play decently.
The rebuild wasn’t poor, the organization’s reaction to the rebuild WAS. Jerry Reinsdorf has a history of complete inaction whenever he stumbles across a few players who are good. Case in point, the last 40+ years as owner of the Sox and Bulls. They never complete a rebuild because all Jerry cares about is media revenues and ticket sales. Winning isn’t a priority for him.
Also, this season is no secret to Sox fans. We’re fully aware that the team would regress if they didn’t sign quality free agents last offseason. We don’t drink the coolaid like a certain other fanbase.
Jealousy is an ugly trait
This team is 3 games back and any CWS fan would agree that they dealt with injuries and some have underperformed. Neither Cleveland nor Minnesota have the assets to improve or run away with the division. You have 80 games left and one of the weakest remaining schedules. If this team doesn’t win the division TLR can just be walked out.
Can TLR play RF or 2B? Can he DH?
No. The problem is the roster. It’s too reliant on bench players and young players who are unreliable and can’t stay on the field. They need more talent to win the division, let alone a WS.
The Sox do have roster problems, no doubt. A great manager would not make them a championship team. But they currently do have the most woefully incompetent manager in the history of the universe. TLR has made so many bonhead decisions especially with lineup choices (Leury batting third or higher in 8 starts I think) that it is almost beyond doubt that he has cost them at least 4-6 games or so already. If they had a decent manager, they would be in first right now in this utterly lousy division. If they were in the AL East, they would be the 5th place team with nary a chance at a playoff spot.
They are 15+ games back of the Astros and Yankees, so it’s all academic… this team isn’t going anywhere even if they are still likely to win the Central. Sure there is always a Lloyd Christmas “so you’re telling me there’s a chance” that they pull off a miracle playoff upset, but it is exceedingly low on the list of things likely to happen in October, as we saw the past two postseasons.
That’s not true. If they had good health and players were playing at average production levels (think outfielders) this team would be in first. The season has plenty of time left for a solid run. I don’t think the other teams in the division will run away from them this year.
The manager has little effect on a bad roster. Reason being, the players have to perform consistently at the very least at replacement level to achieve a .500 or slightly better winning percentage. That’s not happening with this team. They are below average defensively and offensively. There’s nothing a manager can do to change that.
msqboxer-
70 games left… unless you are including playoff and WS games!
Another flawed analysis from mlbtr .. Harrison career .275 hitter in almost 3,000 PA.. he is everyday guy and had a great june & July
Vs RHP.. .271 vs LHP
Whenever I see someone like David Peralta mentioned as a possibility for RF I always cringe. They’ve had somebody like him every year, and this year it’s Pollock! Mediocre, aging, used-to-be-good. Peralta has a WAR under 1, I mean he’s a nobody.
This isn’t the year they should go for anything anyway, certainly not adding mediocre throw away players who are salary dumps from other teams. My highest hope for them is that they don’t do something stupid. And that’s not saying anything about last year, which in hindsight was much ado about nothing. Madrigal has played a handful of games more than Eloy, at about the same very low level. You can’t miss a guy who hasn’t played, and has sucked when he has. He’s been hurt 2/3 of the time since his major league debut, literally. I think all the Nellie Fox comparisons will fall by the wayside finally. Nellie had 12 all star appearances, which is going to be 12 or 13 more than Madrigal will ever have.
It’s hard to assume that Madrigal is trash based on the small sample…. Personally I have my doubts about Madrigal his complete lack of power and inability to be a defensive contributor…. I do think he can get back to hitting around .300 which is something the White Sox would sorely miss
Would love to add Benintendi. I was hoping they would’ve made an effort to acquire him as the Royals saw fit to do. Unfortunately they don’t have much of anything to work with to outbid other teams that would like his services without an egregious overpay. It doesn’t help that Benintendi is the best corner outfielder on the block either. Same division is another negative. Alas, they should probably stay pat with what they’ve got and hope some of their underperforming players pick it up in the 2nd half.
I’m a life long Sox fan and it’s not easy. This year in particular is difficult to enjoy. As much as I hate to say it, I view them as the worst team in the A.L. Not in terms of the win loss column but that they’re supposed to be built to contend and they’re not. Injuries are part of the game for all teams but it’s how you manage through them. Fans have been waiting the past several years and this is the result? Really hoped they’d improve from last year yet here we are disappointed again.
Hoping they can find a way to turn things around but it’s hard to be optimistic.
Reinsdorf basically told Rick Hahn there’s no room in the budget for a major acquisition, hence the incomplete rebuild. That’s what we get in Chicago, the 3rd largest media market in North America. We spend like a rust belt town and I’m disgusted with it.
For those of you that blame the roster..match up the rosters of who of healthy should be starting vs. anyone in the Central and tell me the CWS aren’t better. This is where all this underperforming discussion comes from.
Thank you Steve Adams for the very good article on the Sox’ outfield needs. I’m still hoping my favorite team can recover and win the A.L. Central. If they don’t, you can kiss LaRussa and his cohorts goodbye. The Sox’ window of opportunity is still clearly there this year.
Pretty sure Aaron Hicks and Joey Gallo are available.
I see Happ hitting the red line pretty soon going South. Eloy to DH. Sheets or Burger plus a prospect.
Happ could cost something like Crochet and Vera and a lesser prospect, three players the Sox can’t use this year at the MLB level. Sheets looks like a DH that can’t hit now and Wisdom or Morel would be better for the Cubs than Burger at third.
Lol! Sure. Happ would also bring back Murderers Row in a trade. SMH! Overvalue much!?
It’s slim pickings from the Sox. Basically, Montgomery and hello down there….. Hahn did trade Madrigal off the 60 day IL last year for Kimbrel, an All-Star with more than one year control. So, the precedent and parallels are there.
I certainly can’t argue that the White Sox are a little thin down on the farm.
Contreras for Seby Zavala, too.
Dream on, Chisox_Fan.
The Sox might as well get Eloy, Robert, Giolito, Moncada, and Kopech out if town with trades and reload. They simply aren’t reliable players. Get guys in here with talent who can play hard everyday. They could probably flip some of these guys for Juan Soto and give him a Correa contract with the highest average salary in MLB history, but what’s the point? Jerry would never commit to building around a future HOFer who’s only 23 years old. This @$#&ing sucks.
Id keep Robert, and Kopech. Lets face it, Moncada is going nowhere, I doubt anyone takes any flyer on him, same with Eloy. (and knowing the Sox luck they go somewhere else and are the superstars they should be). The best hope is that with the right coaching staff, you get a lot out of more out of Robert, Moncada, and Kopech (ie no more puppet managers for the benefit of KW and CO. get a guy like Guillen back in the dugout and let him have the reins).. Soto will never be a White Sox sadly. unless the team changes hands. Heck if JR would open his checkbook the Sox would have Story at 2nd and likely be doing better than now. The Sox should be sellers now though (at least with guys like Lynn, Cueto, Grandal if he can get on a hot streak, and find someone who would take Harrison to, maybe Anderson as well), and trying to get some more prospects. I think the Sox do have some good developing players in the minors right now, but are still at least 1-2 years away from the big league club. I also think about all the stuff that has occurred with the unforced errors and sloppy play and wonder what all of those people whining about service time manipulation think now, because to me it looked like Eloy Moncada and Robert needed far more seasoning in the minors…If the Sox buy now.. well Its like putting perfume on a pig. Id like to see new management, go ahead and sell off any of the expensive guys and go young (which they are doing anyway) and that way no tough decisions have to be made to keep the team together by new management.
Ahh, the kool-aid drinkers are back. This team has no heart. With underachieving players, injuries that should not happen, poor little league baserunning mistakes, and godawful errors (including managerial decisions like Garcia batting 3rd), this team reeks. a Setup guy and even a competent 2nd baseman and RF is not going to fix all of this. The fact that KW had to come down to talk to the players (and then seem them promptly play like garbage again), tells you everything you need to know.. Until the 4 game streak that only convinced the koolaid drinkers that this team has any ability ( I mean their abysmal record vs over .500 teams over the last two years should tell you everything). If Hahn trades anyone for any kind of attempt to make the playoffs he is wasting what little talent is available currently in the Minor league system. I think recently history shows that even if they make the playoffs they’ just blow it again and kool aid drinkers will be wondering ‘who’d that happen?”
Cut your loses Rick and plan for next season.. if anything trade some guys (Cueto, Lynn, Abreu and find if there are any takers on guys like Giolito, Grandal) for whatever you can get.. Jettison LaRussa back to the retirement home with apologies and bring in someone else that can actually squeeze something out of this bunch of under achievers…
This team is consistently outplayed on defense. They also have no speed outside of Anderson and Robert. Corner outfield is THE problem with those two deficiencies, and you might add second base.