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The middle of a rebuilding process can be excruciating. Just ask the Chicago White Sox. The newfound optimism that filled the White Sox organization last winter surrounding the arrival of several top 100 prospects to the majors quickly vanished after an 8-18 start in March and April. These struggles forced White Sox fans to add a little bit of patience on top of the optimism they hadn’t felt since barely missing the playoffs by three games in 2012; their closest finish since making the playoffs in 2008 by beating the Twins in game 163.
So exactly where do the White Sox stand in this rebuild? Are they really as far away from contention as their 62-100 record last season suggest? To answer these questions, we are going to go position-by-position to see how the White Sox fared there last season and what we can expect to see moving forward.
Starting Pitcher
What looked like one of the strongest aspects of a young White Sox team ended up being one of the most disappointing. After acquiring two top 100 pitchers in Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez from Washington in exchange for outfielder Adam Eaton two winters ago, the Sox had a promising young core of starting pitchers for 2018. Former third overall pick, Carlos Rodon, was still recovering from a shoulder injury, so the spotlight was on Giolito and Lopez.
The spotlight proved to bright for Lucas Giolito, who finished the year with a 6.13 ERA and 1.477 WHIP. He had a K% of only 16.1% to go along with a subpar BB% of 11.6%. However, Giolito was able to save his season a little with an improved month of August where his ERA and FIP were 3.86 and 3.62 respectively (Fangraphs).
Reynaldo Lopez had a decent but inconsistent season for Chicago. He finished the season with a 3.91 ERA, but his 4.63 FIP and 5.22 xFIP indicates that Lopez may not have pitched as well has mediocre ERA suggests (Fangraphs).
Former third overall pick Carlos Rodon also showed flashes of top-of-the-rotation stuff, albeit inconsistently. He had an incredible 1.88 and 1.80 ERA in the months of July and August, but some this success can be attributed to good luck. He didn’t strike hitters out at the same rate he had in the past and opposing hitters had an incredibly low BABIP against Rodon during his successful stretches. He got off to another slow start last season due to his recovery from a shoulder injury, so with a full spring training, Rodon should be able to build on last season’s success.
The White Sox also have several young pitching prospects that will make an impact when they arrive in the majors. One of those is flame-throwing Michael Kopech, but he’ll have to wait another year to really show what he is capable of after undergoing Tommy John surgery this season. In the 14 innings he pitched, Kopech was as advertised. He struck hitters out 22.1% of the time and had an unbelievable 2.9% (Fangraphs). This success was largely due to the development of his secondary pitches as well as his exceptional command. Although he isn’t throwing 97-99 mph on every fastball, he was able to locate his fastball better than in the past. The White Sox will have a future ace when Kopech returns from his injury.
Catcher
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The White Sox have struggled to find a reliable starting catcher for several years. However, the Sox found surprising success there last season in the form of Omar Narvaez and Kevan Smith.
Narvaez had the highest OPS+ among White Sox hitters with at least 100 plate appearances last season at 120. He has always excelled at getting on base, but improved his power last year to add another dimension to his game. His ISO increased from .063 in 2017 to .154 in 2018. He only hit nine home runs, but was still a big contributor at the plate for the Sox.
Kevan Smith was also productive at the plate. He had an OPS+ of 103 to go along with a very good .292 batting average. He didn’t add much power, but like Narvaez, he got on base at a high clip of .348.
The White Sox have some solid catching prospects, but it is yet to be determined when they will be major league ready. After a solid platoon season in 2018, the White Sox got rid of Omar Narvaez and Kevan Smith, making Welington Castillo, who served an 80-game suspension for PEDs last year, the only catcher on the roster. If the White Sox catching prospects can make it to the majors, they should be set at this position moving forward.
First Base
Jose Abreu had a rollercoaster of a season. After a solid first couple of months, Abreu fell into a steep slump. He had a 62 wRC+ in the month of June, which means he was 38% worse than the average MLB hitter. However, Abreu went back to do Jose Abreu things in the second half of the season, in which he had a wRC+ of 149 (Fangraphs).
Going forward, it is hard to predict where Jose Abreu falls in terms of his future with the White Sox. Abreu will be 32 in January and is entering his last year of arbitration, which means he will be an unrestricted free agent next winter. As a 33 year-old, Abreu will demand a hefty salary, and the White Sox may want to allocate that money elsewhere. Abreu was also thrown around in trade discussions frequently last season as the Sox attempted to acquire more young assets.
However, Abreu has been a crucial part of the White Sox clubhouse, helping young Cuban players such as Yoan Moncada and Luis Robert adjust to life in MLB. Depending on his next contract, the White Sox would love to have Abreu back, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Sox move on from Abreu.
Second Base
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The centerpiece of the Chris Sale trade, the expectations have been sky high for Yoan Moncada. However, 203 games and 291 strikeouts later, many White Sox fans are labeling the once highly-touted prospect a bust.
Last season, Moncada struck out on an abysmal 33.4% of plate appearance (Fangraphs), resulting in the fourth most strikeouts in a single season in MLB history with 217. However, if you watched any White Sox games this season, one, I’m sorry, and two, you would’ve definitely seen Moncada strike out on a borderline strike-three call that was likely out of the zone. Moncada only swung at 23.3% of pitches out of the zone vs. the league average 30.9% (Fangraphs). If Moncada can improve his contact percentage — which was about seven percent below league average — which is a big if, Moncada will be a hard hitter to get out.
Third Base
Third base has been a volatile position for the White Sox, who have been searching for a stable player there ever since Joe Crede left in 2008. Last season, that position was manned by Yolmer Sanchez.
Although a reliable fielder, Sanchez still leaves a lot to be desired at the plate. He had a slash line of .242/.306/.372 last season with eight home runs and 55 RBIs. Yolmer added 14 stolen bases and 62 runs. However, he had a wOBA and a wRC+ of just .297 and 87 respectively, which are both below league average.
His lack of offensive production does not make Yolmer Sanchez and ideal candidate to remain at third base long term for the White Sox. However, his attitude in the clubhouse cannot go unrecognized and he can play every infield position as well as some outfield (he played two innings in right field for the Sox in 2017). This should give him a roster spot on the Sox even if it’s as a utility infielder.
Shortstop
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After signing a six-year extension worth $25 million with the White Sox before the 2017 season, Tim Anderson captured the shortstop position for the foreseeable future for Chicago. However, his time in Chicago has been a mixed bag. He was pretty good in 99 games his rookie season, hitting .283/.306/.432 with nine homers, 57 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases. He took a slight step backwards in 2017 with a slash line of only .254/.276/.402 with continued defensive struggles. However, he did add 17 home runs that season.
Last year, Anderson slashed .240/.281/.406, which on the surface looks pretty disappointing for the White Sox’s shortstop of the future. However, his .289 BABIP was extremely low for a player with Anderson’s speed, which resulting in a lower average. His BABIP his first and second year were .375 and .328 respectively. He added about 3% to his BB%, which although it still sits at a low 5.0%, it’s more than double his number from 2017. He still needs to improve his plate discipline; he had a swinging strike percentage of 14.1% last season. Anderson also added 20 home runs and 26 stolen bases, which made him the first shortstop in White Sox history to have 20 of each.
What stands out about Anderson’s season last year was his immense defensive improvement. Fangraphs gave him a defensive value of -7.0 two years ago, which was the worst among shortstops in baseball by almost 4 points. Last season, that figure improved drastically to 7.2, which was tied with Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts for the tenth best figure. It is easy to see the massive improvement in Anderson’s defense if you have watched him since he got into the majors. It is night-and-day since his rookie season.
I have been a big Tim Anderson supporter since he made his debut, especially when critics were questioning whether or not he belonged at short for the White Sox moving forward. He showed last season that he can become on of the best two-way shortstops in the AL if he can improve his plate discipline a little. I think Anderson has multiple All-Star Game appearances in the future.
Outfield
Saying that the 2018 season was a struggle for White Sox outfielders is a bigger understatement than “Houston, we have a problem.” According to Fangraphs.com, the White Sox had the lowest combine WAR for outfielders at -1.2, making them the only outfield with a negative WAR. Injuries and platooning made it a revolving door, giving only Adam Engel, a 0.2 WAR player, the only thing remotely close to consistent playing time.
There’s not much worth saying about the White Sox outfield, as none of the main players from last season’s unit will be a part of Chicago’s future. Avisail Garcia, who Sox fans had hoped had turned the corner in 2017 when he posted a wRC+ of 137, was non-tendered this offseason after a 97 wRC+ season. Many players received playing time in left field, but that position will ultimately be filled by top prospect, Eloy Jimenez, at some point in 2019.
Daniel Palka showed some promise as a rookie with a fantastic .245 ISO, but his poor fielding and struggles against lefties limits his ceiling to just a platoon outfielder. Leury Garcia, who missed half of the season with injuries can be a solid utility player off the bench. His hitting leaves a lot to be desired, but his speed and reliable fielding is valuable to a team coming off the bench.
The White Sox have a deep pool of outfield prospects, including Jimenez, Luis Robert, Blake Rutherford, Micker Adolfo, and more. This should give Sox fans hope that the future outfield will be considerably better than the product that has been placed on the field in recent years. Especially if they are able to make a big splash in free agency this offseason and sign former MVP, Bryce Harper.