It’s been an uneven season for White Sox right-hander Michael Kopech. He opened the season with a brutal first month where he posted a 7.01 ERA in 25 2/3 innings of work, though he was much more effective in May and June, with a combined 2.83 ERA in 60 1/3 innings across 11 starts. Kopech then missed two weeks leading into the All Star break with a bout of shoulder inflammation, and the wheels have completely come off for Kopech in eight starts since then.
The 27-year-old hurler has posted a brutal 7.15 ERA. Looking under the hood at those eight appearances, Kopech has averaged just over four innings a start while allowing more earned runs (27) and walks (31) than strikeouts (25). That translates to a meager 15.1% strikeout rate and an unbelievable 19.1% walk rate over 34 innings since the All Star break.
While Kopech’s brutal second half, uneven first half, and previous success out of the bullpen where he sports a much more palatable career 3.90 ERA all suggest a return to a relief role could benefit the right-hander, James Fegan of the Chicago Sun Times relays that, according to manager Pedro Grifol, a change in role for Kopech isn’t something the club is considering, either for the remainder of the 2023 campaign or for next season.
“Him not being a starter is not anywhere close to what we’re thinking and anywhere close to what he should be thinking,” Grifol told Fegan, “…even the other day, he was able to gain a little bit of confidence as the outing went on, he was up to 98. The potential’s there.” Grifol goes on to argue that the key to Kopech finding success as a starter figures to be on the mental side of the game, saying that “It’s his responsibility and ours to come together to get that mental side right.”
It’s worth noting that the south-siders are lacking in options to replace Kopech for the remainder of 2023 at this point, what with both Lucas Giolito and Lance Lynn having been shipped away prior to the trade deadline. With Mike Clevinger, Jesse Scholtens, Touki Toussaint and Dylan Cease all already in the rotation, the club’s options for starting depth on the 40-man roster are limited to the likes of Deivi Garcia and Luis Patino, each of whom were placed on waivers by teams in desperate need of starting depth themselves due to poor performance.
Still, that the Sox don’t seem interested in trying the former first-round pick out of the bullpen even heading into next season is indicative of how the club sees itself headed into the 2024 campaign. With Cease locked into the club’s 2024 rotation barring a trade, Scholtens having made himself an interesting back-end option in his own right, and a deep free agent class of pitchers on the horizon this offseason, it would certainly be possible for the White Sox to construct a rotation that would push Kopech to the bullpen. On the other hand, those types of decisions would presumably fall to the club’s GM, and the Sox have yet to hire a replacement for Rick Hahn and Ken Williams, both of whom were fired last week.
It’s also worth noting that while Grifol indicates Kopech will begin the 2024 season as a member of the club’s starting rotation, internal options from the farm system could make their way to the majors throughout the season and challenge for the right-hander’s rotation spot. Recently-acquired right-handers Nick Nastrini and Jake Eder are both prospects with rotation potential who reached the Double-A level before joining the organization, while oft-injured left-hander Garrett Crochet certainly has the stuff to be an interesting rotation option in the event he can get sufficiently healthy this offseason to stretch out as a starter.
It should be
seems like a reset in the Minors would be more in order
In other news, everything Grifol says will be irrelevant in about 5 weeks.
Unemployment is under consideration for Grifol at season’s end.
Agree Michael should remain in the rotation- when’s hes on hes light out. Pitched in to the 6th with no hitters on 3 separate occasions. Thought they misfired too by insisting that Reyno remain in the pen when a move back to the rotation would have been more feasible.
Cease and Kopech will be the building blocks for the rotation in ’24.
What could go wrong?
Kopech should be in minors or BP he’s garbage. He got a mental head. Cease should be in minors too. This team is garbage. Grifol will be gone end of yr
All things considered, I’d say Dombrowski won that trade. Yoan Moncada was supposed to be what Manny Machado turned out to be and Kopech was touted as the next Roger Clemens.
Eder is LH
Did the league figure out Cease too? They should just sell the team and let the new owners move to Nashville.
Grifol’s comments are the problem. He gained confidence in his last outing, he was up to 98. 98 doesn’t matter, he’s walking everyone and then getting lit up. Keep focusing on velocity, that’s working well so far.
Am I the only one that reads sore shoulder then when returns from DL he’s ineffective? You’re counting on him for next season along with a few small free agent signings and triple a players to fill roster. Why not shut him down for rest of the season. Hopefully Pedro is gone and people from outside are brought in to start trying to fix this.
They shorted the staff thru trades and now feel they have no options if Kopech is pulled from the rotation. They don’t have enough of a foundation and the system is weak. Trade anything that moves in the off season for quality prospects. Don’t worry about quantity. Cease and Kopech should have value. Maybe wait another half season before deciding on Roberts. He has the tools, but he needs to mature. If he continues leading the league in solo HRs, move him at the next deadline. Hire experience in the front office. Steal talent from Tampa Bay, Los Angeles, or Milwaukee, teams that know how build thru the minors or work within a budget, and win. Prepare for a lengthy rebuild if you want it done right.
The hired experience in the front office are currently in- house leftovers and Tony LaRussa. Expect more of the same next year.
White Sox fan who says maybe you could get a bag of balls for Moncado and Kopech in a trade, bring in some people from the Dodgers or Rays that know how to develop players, Sox are the worst
Jack Buckley: So true. Kopech was highly touted when he came up and with good reason. His ML debut was awesome. For his next start the stadium was full. However, Kopech tore his UCL after about two innings and that was it. He was erratic and now he’s just bad. He walks too many, gives up too many HRs and when he does leave with the lead, the bullpen blows it. If he did go to the Dodgers he’d be awesome again. There is no one on the Sox coaching staff that can help him. It’s the same with Lynn. He struck out a lot with the Sox but gave up 28 homers. The Dodgers have sorted him out and he’s doing fine. He’s also playing with a far better team.
Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!
It’s funny how people get an opinion of a player and never change it. In 2019 Moncada had a monster year. His hitting and fielding was second to none. Then he caught COVID and his numbers went down. That lasted through 2020-2021. He started showing signs of his old self at the end of last year but now he’s got a problem with a disc in his back that touches a nerve. Still, he came back from the IL and he’s on fire again. He went 2-for-4 Saturday and 4-for4 Sunday. Both were Sox wins. His defense is again outstanding. If he were on the nyy, there would be feature stories done on him and the media would be touting him as a future HOFer.
As someone with a couple of herniated discs, let me provide some insight: there are good days and there are bad days, but the next bad day is always just right around the corner. Moncada might be a periodically productive hitter, but to expect him to stay healthy for an entire year is insane. It’s not like he broke a leg and it healed. It’s a chronic problem that will always limit his playing time and will often limit his productivity when playing.
Disc problems are chronic. It’s not like it healed. So that’s a problem every day. As someone with disc problems, here are some things that have landed me in the hospital: getting out of bed; lifting the toilet seat; turning around when the vacuum came unplugged; picking up a crayon. Moncada is always just one day away from pain.
Moncada may have back issues, but he also has an army of physical therapists on a payroll. He also started performing better with the bat after Hahn and Williams were 86’ed and I do not think that is a coincidence. He was also mediocre before the back injury as well.
I think if Moncada would apply himself and make an effort to stay healthy all season (like proper conditioning program and diet, and yeah I get there are back issues, but you hope can be worked on to be reduced) that you can get 120-140 games out of him.
That is what is most maddening about Moncada, he definitely has the talent (two 5 hit games last season), but its a matter of how much he wants to apply himself (Im talking before the back injury as well). Maybe someone had that ‘talk’ with him and now hes working more with the White Sox.. ahem.. ‘Health and conditioning dept’ and maybe they actually have found something that helps him get out there every day and makes it more comfortable to hit now, maybe he is finally putting in the effort and the results are showing. Back injuries are never good (especially for those playing third base) but I presume that it can be manageable otherwise moving Burger probably wouldn’t (shouldn’t) have occurred.
I think Kopech’s issues also have to due with his personal life with apparently two women both on reality shows. I think he, like others on this club, need to be told they have to focus and drive to improve and not rest on their laurels. I have confidence that Kopech can be a good pitcher.
Mental midget.