PREAMBLE
The White Sox should finally be ready to make a shift to towards contention. Right now almost all of their elite farm talent is ready to make it to the major leagues. The payroll in microscopic and Jerry has show he has jumped the gun in the past on loading with vets for the rebuild.
The dude is in his 80s so I could see him wanting to go for it and get his payroll up in the 120M range this time. Instead of picking up losers like LaRoche, I see the Sox going to the Kenny Williams playbook of getting older players who are past their prime, but capable of be solid contributors who can really help the young players grow.
ARBITRATION-ELIGIBLE PLAYERS
Write “tender” or “non-tender” after each player and their projected 2020 salaries. Feel free to offer explanation afterward if necessary.
- Alex Colomé, $10.3M- Tender, duh
- Yolmer Sánchez, $6.2M- gonna miss your bro
- James McCann, $4.9M- Tender (but getting traded)
- Carlos Rodon, $4.5M- he gone...he can't stay healthy and is running out of years of control. I don't see the Sox hanging on to him
- Leury García, $4M-Tender - It's a tick pricey for what he is but all teams need a good utility player
- Evan Marshall, $1.3M- Tender - Keep him...you need cannon fodder during blowouts
- Josh Osich, $1M- non-tender --> he's a Red Sox now
- Ryan Goins, $900K- non-tender, bye Felicia
CLUB OPTIONS
Write “pick up” or “decline” after the option.
- Welington Castillo: $8 million/$500,000 buyout- The Beef Welington is spoiled. See ya!
OTHER IMPENDING FREE AGENTS
Try to retain, or let go?
- Jose Abreu (made $16M in 2019)- 2yr/26 mil
- Iván Nova (made $9,166,167 in 2019) Let Go- he's cashed
- Jon Jay (made $4M in 2019) - beyond cashed
- Hector Santiago (made $2M in 2019 on split contract) - Bye
FREE AGENTS
No. 1: Madison Bumgarner 4yr/ 60M
The good: He's an 3x World Series champion. He's a 4 time All-Star. He's a Lefty.
The bad: He's almost 31. His effectiveness is decreasing. He has a qualifying offer.
I think the Sox can get him at this deal and he will be a great mentor for the teams first of hopefully many post-season runs. He has experience in big games and should be a great mentor to all the young arms on the team.
No. 2 :Yasmani Grandal 4yr/ 80M
He is a pitchers best friend with his framing numbers and his bat is exactly what this team needs.
No. 3: Didi Gregorius 3 yr/ 33M
How did the Sox win the World Series in 2005? Pitching and defense. Anderson is a fine player, but not a great fielder at the most important position. Didi is coming off a down year, which is a risk. He even if he's a glove first SS going forward, that is fine. I'd expect his offense to rebound next year. Anderson moves to RF where his tools could make him an perennial Gold Glover.
No. 4: Eric Thames 2 yr/ 12M
Lefty power bat who isn't a great fielder. Welcome to the American League. He's unlikely to command a big commitment and he slots in well to this lineup.
No. 5: Cole Hamels 1 yr/ 7 M (2nd year 7M option for 150 innings)
He's old, but he was still effective with the Cubs. The Sox need a guy who can hold the fort down till Kopech is fully ready to go. Worst case scenario all the starters are healthy and they have the luxury of going to a 6 man rotation for stretches during the season.
No. 6. Jake Diekman 2 yr/ 9 M
He isn't as good as he was a few years ago but he's a competent back of the bullpen arm and a lefty. Something this team needs.
No. 7 Martin Maldonado 1 YR/ 2M
The Sox like Collins, but I don't think they want to put all the pressure on him as a back up catcher. I see the Sox interchanging Maldonado, Grandal, and Collins on starting pitching preferences and rest.
TRADES
Hansel Robles for James McCann, Blake Rutherford, and Micker Adolfo
The Angels need a catcher real bad and chances are they are all in on Cole so they probably aren't making Grandal a priority (and he is a White Sox in my universe). Robles only has team control for one year so it's effectively a rental. McCann may be a one year wonder but him with 3rd tier prospects for a one year rental bullpen arm is a fair trade IMO.
Extensions
Luis Robert gets the Eloy-style extension for 8yr/90M that goes into effect in 2021.
It's more money then Eloy got. It's also hard to turn that down if your Robert despite the mega signing bonus.
Nick Madrigal gets the Eloy-style extension for 8yr/55M that goes into effect in 2021.
Madrigal profiles as a glove first contact hitter at a non-premium position so the Sox can get him on a deal similar to Tim Anderson. It's hard to Nick to pass this kind of financial security up.
Line-Up (Name/Position/Bat/Salary)
| Optimal Line up | |||
| Order | Player | Hand | Salary $M |
| 1 | Yoan Moncada | S | 0.5 |
| 2 | Tim Anderson | R | 4 |
| 3 | Jose Abreu | R | 13 |
| 4 | Ysmani Grandal | S | 20 |
| 5 | Eloy Jimenez | R | 2.3 |
| 6 | Eric Thames | L | 5 |
| 7 | Luis Robert | R | 0.5 |
| 8 | Didi Gregorios | L | 10 |
| 9 | Nick Madrigal | R | 0.5 |
Bench (Name/Position/Bat)
| Bench | |||
| Position | Player | Hand | Salary $M |
| C | Martin Maldonado | R | 2 |
| IF/OF | Leury Garcia | S | 0.5 |
| OF | Adam Engel | R | 0.5 |
| C/1B | Zach Collins | L | 0.5 |
Bullpen
| Bullpen | |||
| Position | Name | Hand | Salary |
| CL | Hansel Robles | R | 5 |
| 8th | Aaron Bummer | L | 0.5 |
| 7th | Alex Colome | R | 10.3 |
| 6th | Kelvin Herrera | R | 8.5 |
| Righty | Evan Marshall | R | 1.3 |
| Loogy | Jake Diekman | L | 5 |
| Long Relief | Dylan Covey | R | 0.5 |
I know people will see Covey and get PTSD, but I think that he would be good in the long reliever role and he's a guy who the Sox really like.
Starters
| Starting Pitchers | |||
| Position | Name | Hand | Salary $M |
| 1 | Lucas Giolito | R | 0.54 |
| 2 | Madison Baumgartner | L | 15 |
| 3 | Cole Hamels | L | 7.5 |
| 4 | Dylan Cease | R | 0.65 |
| 5 | Reynoldo Lopez | R | 0.65 |
| IL* | Michael Kopech | R | 0.65 |
I don't see the Sox wanting to push Kopech at all. He will be up when he's a 1105. With Hamels and Baumgarner, the team has what they need to get through the 2-3 months of the season and one guy and then have depth for later in the year.
TEAM SPENDING: $115,340,000
This a lot of money to spend in one off-season for the Sox. That being said, they aren't going after the biggest names in the market and they aren't handing out any 5 year contracts so this is feasible.
The defense up the middle with Robert, Didi, and Madrigal could be exceptional. Moncada is solid on the hot corner. Anderson could be a legit all-star if his defense in RF is a good as his tools suggest it should be.
The Starting Pitching and the Bullpen have real depth that can withstand and injury or two without completely falling apart.
The vets coming in have a ton of playoff games under their bet and should help expedite the return to contention in a big way. If this happens, the Sox will be really fun to watch, which isn't something I've said in VERY long time.
